In the dynamic setting of healthcare facilities, the effective management of hospital linens is a crucial yet often overlooked aspect. A startling statistic from a TRSA study reveals that almost 90% of all linens used in U.S. hospitals do not reach the end of their useful life, resulting in an annual cost of over $840 million for the healthcare industry. This significant financial burden underscores the need for comprehensive linen management training—a need that should be deeply ingrained in the culture of every facility.

Cultivating a Culture of Care

Leadership plays a pivotal role in prioritizing effective linen management, thereby establishing the norm that the proper handling and management of linens are not just routine tasks but essential responsibilities. This proactive approach sets a standard, ensuring that every team member recognizes and embraces their crucial role in this operation.

Start Strong with Crown’s Support

Effective linen management training begins from day one. All staff should be given an overview of good linen handling basics. Crown provides our customers with an educational video that is less than three minutes long and is a free resource for both orientation and ongoing training sessions.

Continuous Learning and Reinforcement

Learning is an ongoing process. As Josh Kaufman highlights in his book “The First 20 Hours: How to Learn Anything... Fast!”, mastering a new skill takes deliberate practice. While less complex, linen management is no exception and requires continuous reinforcement. Hospitals can achieve this through various means:

• Visual Aids: Posters and signs in staff areas, provided by Crown at no cost, can serve as constant reminders.
• Microlearning: Crown’s QuickCare Linen Lessons utilize short, on-the-spot training sessions that fit into the busy schedules of healthcare staff. These sessions occur directly on the floors, making it convenient and immediate.
• Regular Discussions: Incorporating linen management topics into staff meetings and as part of pre- or post-rounding discussions ensures the subject remains a priority.
• Digital Reinforcement: Utilizing employee newsletters, online training modules, and even screensavers can help keep the information fresh in your staff's minds.
• Make Learning Fun! Games and competitive challenges, such as the most improved floor/department/hospital, foster a competitive spirit that can lead to significant improvements.

Emphasizing the Pace of Change

Understanding that change takes time is crucial, especially when discarding linen has become routine. Hospital administrators should recognize that altering these established habits is a gradual process. It often takes around 66 days to form a new habit. Therefore, a single training session will take time to transform practices or impact the bottom line. Instead, adopting new linen management practices must be an ongoing effort, continually and systematically reinforced, to ensure long-term success.

Crown Health Care Laundry is dedicated to assisting our healthcare partners in managing linens effectively. By partnering with us, facilities can reduce linen loss, enhance patient care, and achieve more sustainable operations. We are here to help you establish these practices as a core part of your facility’s culture, providing continuous support and practical tools at every step. For more information or assistance with your facility’s education efforts, please contact your customer service representative or reach out to us via email at contactus@crownlaundry.com.