New study
integrated scientific evidence with practical insights from care home operations. The newly developed simplified guidance places education at the forefront, recognising that informed staff are more likely to adhere to protocols. HTM 01-04 principles were outlined in a simplified manner for the handling, segregating, and laundering of textiles in order to reduce complexity and enhance compliance, ensuring that care homes can implement effective IPC measures while accommodating the diverse needs of residents. The developed guidance can be found via
the Infection Prevention Society at https://
www.ips.uk.net/Safe-Management-of- Linen-in-the-Health-Care-Environment.
Key findings from research A mixed-methods study involving over 1,000 care home staff provided critical insights into current practices and areas for improvement around laundry processing within care home settings. The study highlighted significant gaps in knowledge, with approximately 30 per cent of healthcare workers unaware of IPC guidelines such as HTM 01-04 and BS EN 14065:2016 Textiles – Laundry processed textiles – Biocontamination control system. This lack of awareness often translated into inconsistent practices. For example, while 87 per cent of managers reported maintaining a ‘dirty-to-clean’ workflow in laundry rooms, up to 15 per cent lacked this essential segregation.
Furthermore, under half of care workers
believe that bed linen (49 per cent), personal laundry (46 per cent) and staff uniforms (44 per cent) are always processed well in their
Key: bedlinen
personal laundry green bar
Fig.1 Care workers’ responses to ‘in your setting, is laundry processed well?’
Fig.2 Care workers’ and managers’ responses to ‘would you like more support with running on-premises laundries?’
on-premises laundry sites. Appropriate training was another area of concern. Only 22 per cent of care staff had received any formal laundry training, yet 86 per cent expressed a desire to receive more training in this aspect. The respondents indicated a need to improve their knowledge and skills, provided they are given the necessary resources and support. Infrastructure challenges were also
prevalent, particularly in smaller care homes that often lack industrial-grade equipment
and space for appropriate segregation of dirty and clean linen, therefore increasing the risks of infection transmission.
Challenges in implementation Implementing effective laundry practices in care homes is not without its challenges. Resource constraints are a significant barrier, especially for smaller sized facilities that may lack the necessary space or equipment, such as commercial washing machines capable of thermal or chemical disinfection. High staff turnover and reliance on agency workers further complicates efforts to maintain consistent training and compliance with IPC protocols. A manager of multi-site care home company that supports over 200 residents commented on the challenges, stating: “[HTM 01-04] is a national standard that’s
been applied to care homes, that was never designed for care homes, and that’s what we’re audited against … homes [are] being audited against standards that perhaps [are not] designed for that setting.” Balancing IPC requirements with the personal needs of residents is another challenge. Washing personal items at high temperatures, while effective for disinfection, can damage clothing, leading to complaints from residents and their
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www.thecarehomeenvironment.com April 2025
LIGHTFIELD STUDIOS -
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