Laundry and infections

Staff : Did you know that hospital workers’ exposure to potentially infected linen can constitute a risk of occupational diseases ?

Trainee : No, I didn’t. This means that healthcare workers, in contact directly or indirectly with patients, are at risk of nosocomial infections ?

Staff : Yes. That’s why the disinfection process of laundering contaminated linen requires treatment that is wash-based.

Trainee : Does this target bed covers in hospitals ?

Staff : Yes, but also clothing, both the patients’ and ours. And this also goes for care homes, nursing homes and similar facilities, as well as in the home care setting. In other words, all those places that give care to the sick and infirm.

Trainee : But what exactly is soiled linen ?

Staff : The nature of laundry soiling depends on the source, and at the most extreme levels, for example in hospital and nursing home environments, is likely to include blood, wound exudates, sputum, saliva, sweat and urine, as well as vomit and faeces. Infected linen is defined as linen derived from known infectious patients, including those with HIV, hepatitis A, B, C and other infectious agents.

Trainee : But then linen can never be safe, can it ?

Staff : It can be made safe by washing, generally with chlorine bleach. Common-sense hygienic practices for processing and storage are recommended to remove any contaminating body fluids, and the risk of actual disease will generally be negligible.

Trainee : Does that mean that we can handle linen the way it seems good for us ?

Staff : Well, soiled linen should be handled as little as possible and with minimum agitation to prevent gross microbial contamination of the air and of persons handling the linen.

Trainee : And are there any other special recommendations ?

Staff : Yes. All soiled linen should either be bagged or placed in containers at the location where it was used.

Trainee : But what about heavily contaminated linen ?

Staff : Linen heavily contaminated with blood or other body fluids should also be bagged and transported in a manner that will avoid leakage. You should know that soiled linen is generally sorted in the laundry before washing.

Trainee : And who takes care of the sorting ?

Staff : The laundry personnel do so. They wear gloves and other appropriate protective apparel during the process of sorting.

Trainee : Can we handle our personal laundry at home ?

Staff : Home washing machines do not fully eradicate dangerous hospital-acquired bacteria. Therefore it would be safer to leave your working gear to be cleaned here at the laundry so as not to bring harmful hospital bacteria home on your scrubs and uniforms.