Reasons for the Poor Quality of Linen Items in Public Sector Hospitals and Few Simple Measures to Improve

Abstract

Patient scrubs, doctors and staff scrubs, bed linen, sterile packs for Operation Theatres (OTs), and Intensive Care Units (ICUs) are the most familiar linen-based items used in any hospital.  Few studies published in this domain establish the direct level of satisfaction associated with the quality of linen provided to a patient during his stay. There are hardly any studies undertaken to evaluate the impact of good quality scrubs on work efficiency, productivity, and impression the doctors and staff have about them. Few simple measures^___ choosing the right type and quality of linen required for hospital use through customized specifications, quality based stitching, provisioning of dedicated space for stacking of fresh linen items in patient care areas, storage of used and soiled linen in sluice rooms, dedicated training of staff involved in the transport of linen both to and from the laundry, due allocation of time to various steps of the wash process, strengthening of mending process at the level of laundry and adoption of scientific techniques of inventory management could bring a tremendous change in the quality of linen items used and perception regarding the same in a hospital.