“I am certainly not one of those who need to be prodded. In fact, If anything, I am the prod” `Winston Churchill. I like this quote because I don’t want to be one who waits to be told, I force myself to take action, to learn something new everyday, and to gently but firmly prod…
When was the last time you were at your doctors office, or (and I hope not) at a hospital, and it was not as clean as you would expect? Unfortunately with the cleaning being demanding physical labor, it takes a good management team to bring out the best in cleaning results. As one who…
Yes, I received your messages and of course, I’m around. I’ve been to Colorado which is so very nice, and I already like more than California, but that is another story. I’ve done a lot of writing and I’ll make sure that I post valuable stuff here at least once or twice a week. Thanks…
Environmental Services departments are constantly being challenged to “do more with less,” to give quality services with fewer resources, especially labor resources. Cleaning is a very labor intensive function and our largest costs relate to labor. A ES manager must constantly be looking for ways to improve labor productivity, either through improved tools or…
For most people, all they require from their toilet is that it flushes without blocking itself. But now a new high-tech toilet has been launched which includes a heated seat, a massage function, and two ‘sanitizing nozzles’ which it claims eliminates the need for toilet paper. It even includes a lid which automatically opens and…
“You’ve got to get up every morning with determination if you’re going to go to bed with satisfaction.” — George Lorimer Self-determination to refer to a characteristic of a person that leads them to make choices and decisions based on their own preferences and interests, to monitor and regulate their own actions and to be…
Advice from one of the greatest leaders and decision-makers of our time: General Norman Schwarzkopf. As a young man, Schwarzkopf worked as an assistant to a general. At one point, the general was involved in a research project that the Pentagon was working on. For five years, no decisions had been made on how to…
Survey after survey shows employees consider recognition as one of the top desires in any job. Yet those same surveys show little recognition is received. How much of a leaders success is hindered by their lack of recognition for the work their employees do. People who feel appreciated are more positive about themselves and…
Most of us understand that floor finish performance is greatly enhanced by allowing adequate dry time. But, few people understand why this is so important and what mechanism is at work. Floor finish contains many independent ingredients such as water, polymer, resin, wax, plasticizer, coalescing agent and defoamer that, when combined together, form a stable,…
Each year we celebrate environmental services week. How about we celebrate everyday for the next year. Our hardworking staff mean so much to staff, visitors and patients.
Happy Environmental Services and Housekeeping week to all the very hard service workers in our industry. In a department comparison test we: Serve more people on a daily basis Save more lives through infection control Clean up the health care environment than any other Talk with more patients each day Handle hundreds more pounds…
I’m sorry that I have been inconsistent, or non-existent in updating this website over the past few months. I’m working on so many things I’ve put my time in other areas. Soon I will be adding new content, longer posts that have greater emphasis in learning, team building, and inspiring your staff to greatness. Remember…
Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skillful execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives. ~Willa A Foster All hospital environmental service departments have some form of quality assurance process. However often the cleaning inspections are done when it is slow,…
Here are five things that environmental service leaders should do to improve relationships with staff. Be Visible with Rounding Rounding should include one-on-one rounds with your staff. Ask what is working well and what they need from you to do a better job. Appoint a department champion Identify a department champion who is well respected…