4
Business View Magazine
74 Business View – October
Healthcare
Adherence to these standards and procedures
would be essential if the Ebola outbreak were to
spread to the United States with any consequence,
Gicewicz said.
The principal benefit to the healthcare customer
is the knowledge and confidence that their textile
provider is meeting the highest standards for
processing healthcare textiles in the industry,
including strict adherence to federal government
regulations and guidelines. The customer can
expect a consistent and smooth flow of clean
textiles; and, ultimately, the knowledge of safety for
their employees and the end user – the patient.
As of July 1, the HLAC board no longer allows
reaccreditation after a laundry organization’s
expiration
date.
Organizations
due
for
reaccreditation can be inspected at any time 60
days prior to and up to the expiration date of
their current accreditation. Organizations that
do not complete their reaccreditation during this
timeframe will lose their accreditation. On the day
after the accreditation expiration date, the laundry
organization’s name will be removed from the
HLAC website and all marketing stating they are
HLAC Accredited must be stopped immediately.
Inspections take one day and are comprised of two
parts: a physical walk-through of the entire plant,
and conference time in a quiet room for review of
documents. Inspectors use a checklist that closely
follows the Accreditation Standards for Processing
Reusable Textiles for Use in Healthcare Facilities,
2011 Edition, published on the HLAC website.
Each item is essentially a statement of fact and the
inspector will mark “yes,” “no,” or “not applicable,”
and add remarks as necessary.
Possible inspection outcomes are “Approval,”
“Remediation” and “Accreditation Denied/
Revoked.”
