Cleaning and maintaining the built environment of a healthcare facility, or a building where healthcare services are delivered is driven largely by regulations and guidelines. These include regulations set forth by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA), The Joint Commission (TJC), the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), state and local agencies such…
In Environmental Services, we are aware that first impression of our facility is very important to our clients and other staff, so we strive daily to provide a clean, safe and attractive environment. We also ensure that patient rooms are cleaned to the highest level to prevent cross contamination. The hospital, staff and patient depend…
I had a request for basic cleaning principles for a doctor’s office. Here is a list for any healthcare facility, and for your home as well. Scrubbing is the best way to physically remove dirt, debris and microorganisms. Cleaning is required prior to any disinfection process because dirt and debris will decrease the…
INVINCIBLE There’s a simple way to become indestructible: have the intention to do your best at whatever you’re doing, right now. To gain the invulnerability I’m referring to, you must pass through the gate of the total vulnerability putting yourself on that line demands. Not BE the best… DO your best. Attempting to be the…
March 21, 2010 — The great healthcare reform battle of 2009 and 2010, for the most part, is over. Congressional Democrats today finally passed their bill. The only thing it needs now is the signature of President Barack Obama to become the law of the land. In a 219 to 212 vote, the House approved…
One of the organizations I am a member of, and actually the first that I joined, is the International Executive Housekeeping Association or IEHA. Since 1930, the International Executive Housekeepers Association (IEHA) has been a non-profit organization committed to raising professionalism in the cleaning industry and providing a cleaner, safer, healthier environment. IEHA members are…
Time sure goes by fast. Sorry to have been away so long. I’ve been staying very busy, writing 83 performance evaluations, finishing my totally updated training manual, and learning as much as I can to be a great hospital safety officer. I’m going to be posting some questions I’ve been asked recently, and give you…
Storage on the floor must be neat and orderly. No storage within 18 inches of the ceiling, except on shelves against the wall as long as sprinklers are not obstructed. No evidence of smoking. All exit signs are illuminated. No storage of flammables or anything except cleaning items under sinks. No door stops are allowed….
If I asked how many of you have seen a killer phrases poster … or even have one hanging in your office … I’m sure I’d see hands going up all over the world. What I seldom see are the replacements for the killer phrases … the things we can say instead of those old…
How to get rid of backlogs There are basically two types of task which we are faced with during a typical day. First there is the type of task which either gets done or doesn’t get done. You either renew the car insurance or you don’t. You either paint the bedroom or you don’t. You…
Change Begins With Choice by Jim Rohn Any day we wish; we can discipline ourselves to change it all. Any day we wish; we can open the book that will open our mind to new knowledge. Any day we wish; we can start a new activity. Any day we wish; we can start the process…
Questions to help you delineate your goals… 1. “What’s my vision of the future?” 2. “Where do I picture myself three years from today?” 3. “How will others perceive me in the future? My boss, my peers, my family?” 4. “What has to happen in the next two years for me to be happy…
When an agency inspector comes to inspect your hazardous waste storage area, he looks for things like waste manifests, reports, labels, and plans. Why? Because it is easy to find violations in these areas – either you have filled them out properly or you have not. It is straightforward. The video below is…
Here is a short video from California’s DTSC on the training requirements for hazardous waste generators:
One of the four characteristics of a hazardous waste is “reactivity”. The other three are ignitability, toxicity and corrosivity and these three characteristics are pretty easy to define by measuring the flash point, concentration and pH respectively. Reactivity is a bit harder (less objective) to determine. The California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) has…