In the healthcare industry where linen is in direct contact with residents we have a responsibility to ensure that the linen is not only comfortable and clean to the sight and smell, but also safe and microbiologically clean. Laundry is a potential carrier of infection and should therefore ideally be subject to the same controls as other carriers such as our hands, crockery etc. When it comes to laundry hygiene, there’s no room for compromise! 

The European Standard for Biocontamination Control EN 14065 contains guidelines for Risk Analysis and Biocontamination Control (RABC). Applying these guidelines to your laundry assures continuous optimum hygiene of the laundered textiles, reducing the risk of infection to patients and staff.

We have used our 15 years experience in linen hygiene to put together a process based on these guidelines to provide you with the best defence against the spread of germs, bacteria and dust particles.

We can offer lots of practical advice which you can quickly implement in order to run a more hygienic laundry. There are many small things that can be done to reduce the risk of spreading infection via sheets, towels etc. And with the increase in superbugs such as MRSA and C-diff, we need to be doing everything we can.

The Electrolux barrier washer is the ideal solution for fighting nosochomial infections in healthcare institutions.

A barrier washer is a washing machine with at least two external doors. The two doors are located on two different sides of the machine. One of the doors is only used for loading, the other door is only used for unloading the machine. This allows the machine to be installed in a wall that clearly divides the dirty linen area and the clean linen area. The doors are controlled electronically so that both doors can never be opened at the same time. Staff moving from the dirty side to the clean side must pass through a small room where contaminated gloves and gowns are removed and hands are thoroughly washed. This simple separation technique means cross contamination is avoided.

Traceability for Quality Control
With the Certus Management Information System™ (CMIS) you will have peace of mind that every load of washing and drying is monitored and recorded for future access, and that the system will alarm if critical parameters have not been met. The system means that the laundry process can be integrated into your overall quality procedures and that RABC compliance can be proved.