General Note

NHS Fife acknowledges and agrees with the importance of regular and timely review of policy statements and aims to review policies within the timescales set out. New policies will be subject to a review date of no more than 1 year from the date of first issue.

Reviewed policies will have a review date set that is relevant to the content (advised by the author) but will be no longer than 3 years.

If a policy is past its review date then the content will remain extant until such time as the policy review is complete and the new version published, or if national policy or legislative changes are made.

1.    FUNCTION 

1.1     To ensure that adequate arrangements exist for the laundering of long stay patients’ personal clothing while they are in hospital, where no relative or carer is able to undertake this.

2.    LOCATION 

2.1    Personal clothing laundry facilities are available at the following hospitals: Queen Margaret, Victoria, Cameron, and Stratheden. 

2.2     Personal clothing laundry facilities for inpatients at Adamson, St Andrews and Glenrothes Community Hospitals are provided at Stratheden Hospital. Personal clothing laundry facilities for inpatients at Whyteman’s Brae Hospital are provided at Victoria Hospital. Personal clothing laundry facilities for inpatients at Lynebank Hospital are provided at Queen Margaret Hospital (List of sites enclosed at Appendix A).

3.    RESPONSIBILITY

3.1    Senior Charge nurses, ward-based staff, patients and relatives.

4.    OPERATIONAL SYSTEM 

4.1    General

4.1.1    Where a patient has relatives who are able to undertake the laundering of patient’s clothing, the relatives should take laundry home for laundering. Ward Staff should provide a copy of the leaflet “Washing Clothes at Home”, Health Protection Scotland June 2019, to the relative/carer (Appendix C).  If relatives wish to take soiled or infected clothing home, these items should be placed in a water-soluble patient clothing bag inside a white “Patients Clothing“ bag, accompanied by a copy of ‘Patient Clothing Bag – Patient advice sheet’. Relatives should also be offered the opportunity to use the Central Laundry facilities at Victoria Hospital for infected clothing.

4.1.2    All clothing to be taken home should be bagged in the Patient Clothing Bag and retained in the patient’s locker for up to five days or until relatives are able to remove the clothing.  This will be managed by the Senior Charge Nurse.

4.1.3    Heavy soil on clothing should be disposed of into toilet or sluice hopper by nursing staff, then garments should be placed in a water-soluble patient clothing bag inside a patient clothing bag and relatives alerted.

4.2    Care of Clothing for Patients utilising the Personal Laundry Services

4.2.1    Where a patient has no relative or carers who are able to take personal clothing home for laundering, arrangements may be made by the Senior Charge Nurse to have the clothing laundered by the Personal Laundry service.

4.2.2    Before using the Personal Laundry service, clean clothing should be sent in a patient’s clothing bag to the appropriate hospital sewing room to be securely labelled with the patient’s name and ward name/number (Appendix B).

4.2.3    Used clothing which has not been labelled should be placed by nursing staff into a patient clothing bag and labelled – Personal Laundry Ward X, Unmarked.  These items will be returned to the ward after washing.  If the patient is to remain in hospital, then the Senior Charge Nurse should forward these items to the hospital sewing room as soon as possible.

4.2.4    Soiled and infected items, the Safe Handling of Laundry policy must be followed, and the clothing forwarded to Victoria Hospital laundry.  Both soiled and infected clothing should be placed inside a water-soluble bag, inside a polythene bag, inside a red hamper.  The bags must be clearly marked ‘Personal Laundry’ and identify the ward name and hospital before forwarding to the Victoria Hospital Laundry for processing.

4.2.5    Senior Charge Nurse should alert local portering staff when used labelled patient clothing requires transfer to the Personal Laundry.

4.2.6    Any queries regarding patient personal laundry should be addressed to the following:

Assistant Support Services Manager, Central Fife, Community    Ext. 46850
Assistant Support Services Manager, West Fife    Ext. 24145
Deputy Support Services Manager, Stratheden Hospital and North East Fife    Ext. 56309
Linen Services Manager, 
Victoria Hospital    Ext. 28975

5.    RISK MANAGEMENT 

5.1    The above policy establishes how the risk of damage, loss, and cross contamination to patients’ personal clothing will be managed to reduce risks, infection, and damage to clothing.

6.    RELATED DOCUMENTS 

6.1    Appendix A: NHS Fife Personal Laundry Facilities

6.2    Appendix B: NHS Fife Sewing Rooms

6.3    Appendix C: “Washing Clothes at Home” leaflet (HPS June 2019)

6.4    Safe Handling of Laundry Policy

6.5     Loss, Theft and Policy

6.6    Infection Control Manual

7.    REFERENCES

7.1    Infection Control Manual

7.2    NHSScotland Health Protection Scotland “Washing Clothes at Home” document