“Dirty laundry


must be handled with care before


washing to minimise the possibility of


dispersing viruses through the air.”


Laundering with care


Aidan Carey, Business Development Manager at Miele Ireland’s Professional Division, on managing infection control and prevention in care homes.


While hygiene has always been a priority in the care sector, the pandemic has highlighted the need for vigilance with regard to sanitation, to mitigate the risk of infection in order to protect vulnerable residents.


This comes alongside a multitude of complex issues on top of patient care. Clear guidelines on best practice procedures enable staff to maintain high standards of hygiene while managing the busy day to day tasks of running a care home.


Infection prevention and control


Items should be washed in accordance with the washing machine manufacturer’s instructions. Washing machines that comply with the UK regulation, WRAS (Water Regulations Advisory Scheme) category five, are also available in the Irish market. These machines prevent the main water supply from being contaminated by bodily fluids that can present serious health hazards, giving the end user better protection from cross-contamination at no extra cost.


Staff should dispose of items that are heavily soiled with body fluids, or items that cannot be washed. Staff should also not manually sluice items contaminated with bodily fluids. Washable soiled items should be placed into an alginate bag/water soluble bag and staff should wear gloves and an apron for this process. These items should then be thermally disinfected using the machine’s sluice programme for disinfection at 71°C for three minutes or 60°C for 10 minutes.


PPE should be worn by staff when loading soiled items into a washing machine, including fluid-resistant gowns covering the arms and torso, latex gloves, an apron and face mask to stop the inhalation of cleaning chemicals. Staff should remove and dispose of the contaminated items before moving on to other tasks such as handling clean laundry to avoid spreading infection.


Dirty laundry must be handled with care before washing to minimise the possibility of dispersing viruses through


14 | COMMERCIAL LAUNDRY


the air. Dirty laundry should be kept completely separate from clean, if possible, in a separate room. It should not be placed on the floor or other surfaces that could risk cross-contamination.


Where possible, staff uniforms and clothing should be washed on site. In instances where this is not possible, staff should use a plastic bag to transport their laundry home and wash immediately upon arrival.


Management and staff need to be fully and thoroughly briefed on the correct laundry procedures and how to maintain high standards of hygiene, as well as any new industry regulations. In cases of high staff turnover, managers should keep up to date with new recruits who may be involved with laundry operations and provide relevant training.


Recommended laundry appliances


Sluice washers prevent the spread of infection through specific sluice wash programmes, freeing potentially harmful substances from laundry and flushing them away prior to the main washing cycle. The washer thoroughly disinfects and cleanses laundry items such as bed linen, towels and clothing, minimising infection risk by adding an extra layer to the disinfection process.


Barrier washers are designed with two doors, one on the front and one on the back, preventing cross contamination of dirty and clean laundry. They are normally installed in the wall between two rooms, the loading side is called the ‘dirty’ side and the unloading side is called the ‘clean’ side. Staff place soiled items in the ‘dirty’ side and decontaminate themselves before leaving. Once the cycle is finished, items can be retrieved from the ‘clean’ side in the opposite room, preventing recontamination.


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