Laundry Operations are a critical component in creating a safer, hygienic and more efficient healthcare environment. With an effective laundry operations system, the benefits include:
- Better infection control practices
- Increased patient care and comfort
- Fewer safety hazards
- Improved productivity within laundry operations and
- Better inventory management
Within laundry operations, a hospital laundry trolley plays a key role in streamlining laundry management. It can assist with load and capacity management, soiled linen collection, better linen segregation, and a more efficient laundry categorisation and identification system.
Significance of Efficient Laundry Operations in Hospitals
A hospital laundry trolley helps in the smooth running of laundry operations within different healthcare settings. A laundry trolley for hospital can assist in strengthening and maintaining hygiene standards. Having a clean and sterile hospital setting is essential as it may reduce the likelihood of healthcare associated infections. Thus, improving patient safety.
Better laundry operations can also help to reduce contamination risk through clear segmentation of clean and soiled linens, and isolation of soiled linens. Not having efficient laundry operations can increase the risk of infections within healthcare settings, increase cross-contamination, lead to more resource wastage, increase turnaround times, high frequency of inventory shortages and can reduce staff productivity.
Understanding Hospital Laundry Trolleys
A hospital laundry trolley is a type of laundry cart or linen trolley designed for the collection, transportation and distribution of linens within a healthcare facility. These laundry trolleys help to streamline an array of tasks within your facility. Examples of these are: collecting dirty or soiled linens, transporting laundry and linen throughout your practice or clinic, and distributing clean linens and linen storage.
There are a range of different laundry trolleys which can be utilised based on your linen needs. Examples of these are mesh linen trolleys, basket storage trolleys, linen tub trolleys, and soiled linen trolleys. Laundry trolley for hospitals have segmentation options through features like shelves, baskets, tubs, disposable or coloured linen bags.
The Impact of Hospital Laundry Trolleys on Efficiency
The design and functionality of a hospital laundry trolley assists in streamlining laundry operation processes in your healthcare facilities. Being mobile, laundry trolleys assist in better transportation helping to manoeuvre heavier and more frequent loads of linen. This may help to improve overall workflow within your organisation by effectively segmenting and categorising your linens and increasing overall linen storage capacity. Laundry trolleys also reduce the need for manual labour providing staff with the ability to increase laundry transportation frequency and load amount. This leads to both time and cost savings.
Factors to Consider when Choosing Laundry Hospital Trolleys
There are several factors involved when deciding which laundry trolley for hospital is the right decision for your healthcare facility. Examples of these are:
(A) Size and capacity requirements: Based on the scale and frequency of your laundry operations, different sizes and capacities for your laundry hospital trolley may be required. Our laundry trolleys are available in different capacities with 18, 21, and 28 basket laundry capacity requirements, a range of mesh storage shelves and different soiled linen bags.
(B) Material and durability: At Advance Trolleys the longevity and durability of our laundry trolley range is important to us. That is why we manufacture our trolleys from durable materials like stainless steel and high-quality plastic to ensure your trolley is fit for purpose and lasts across multiple loads.
(C) Ergonomic design for staff: It is important for your staff that the laundry trolleys they use assists in load management, decreasing injury likelihood and back strain. Through using swivel castor wheels and a manual braking system, we increase the ability of your workers to manoeuvre linen throughout your facility.
(D) Budget Considerations: A hospital laundry trolley needs to work within your budgeting requirements, with the purchase lasting across frequent uses and everyday wear and tear.
Maintenance and Care of Laundry Hospital Trolleys
Opting for trolleys that need easier levels of maintenance and care allows for a simpler and faster cleaning solution. Within a healthcare environment, cleaning and disinfection are essential for reducing infection risk.
To effectively clean your hospital laundry trolley, we recommend removing all linen and trolley contents helping remove any loose debris. This should be followed by diluting a cleaning-solution detergent with good material compatibility to effectively clean your trolley. It is important to focus cleaning efforts on areas that are regular touchpoints such as handles, wheels and seams. The trolley should then be rinsed which is followed by disinfection using a hospital-grade disinfectant to remove harmful pathogens. Rinse the trolley again and allow it to completely dry to reduce the risk of bacteria and mould growth.
Proper storage and maintenance of your trolley can also help prolong its lifespan, reducing the need for replacement. The trolley should be stored within clean and dry areas to maintain high hygiene standards. Regular maintenance of the trolleys through replacement of damaged wheels or screws can also reduce harmful wear and tear.
Conclusion
A hospital laundry trolley is an essential component to streamline laundry operations within your hospitals. Laundry operations can be improved by improving hygiene and safety, better segmenting and organising laundry, better inventory management and less resource wastage. To improve your laundry management system and learn more about our laundry hospital trolley range, get in touch with our friendly sales team on 1800 802 224.
