Hospital Improves Laundry Service

Bermuda Hospitals Board (BHB) is pleased to announce today the official opening of its modernised Laundry at a ribbon cutting ceremony attended by the Hon. Nelson Bascome, MP JP, Minister of Health, and Venetta Symonds, BHB’s Deputy Chief Executive Officer.

More people are touched by work performed in the Laundry Department each day than almost any other area of the hospital. Gowns, bed-linen and towels used by out- and inpatients, as well as scrubs and lab coats used by staff, make up the 1.5 million pounds of laundry processed annually by employees in this department.

The project, begun in February of last year, includes the installation of a 450-pound washer, two folding machines capable of processing sheets, pads, patient gowns, towels and blankets and software applications that monitor equipment failures and assesses productivity and operations.

Laundry staff have also visited US hospitals and commercial laundries in operation, learning first-hand about best practices in order to establish new processes at BHB. The combination of new equipment and professional staff is bringing a highly efficient service, meeting international best practices for hospitals.

Among improvements to the department are scales for weighing-in linen sent to and returned from the wards, additional exchange carts for hospital areas, an air-conditioning system, new flooring and a storage area that holds a 2-day supply of linens allowing for back-up in the case of emergencies. Laundry service for MWI will now be consolidated with KEMH.

Mrs. Symonds comments: “We have invested in staff and in the physical plant so that we can firmly establish best practice processes and standards in this department. I’m very proud of the work of the BHB Laundry team. It is vital to the operations of the hospital and directly impacts our ability to provide a high quality level of care to patients.”

Ms. Blanche Phillips-Wilkinson, Manager of Laundry adds: “I am so proud to see this modernisation project complete and see BHB’s Laundry team equipped to provide a service that rivals the best in the world. Given the importance of the Laundry service to the smooth running of the hospital, I would like to express our appreciation to Butterfield & Vallis and BELCO for their generous financial support of this project. Thanks to their donations, our facility is delivering a quality service to patients, staff and the community.”

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