How many Senior Care Homes in India actually feel that Laundry Management is an important area for Infection Prevention and Control (IPC)?
To be honest, I have my doubts if Care Homes in India have any documented guidelines and training material on how to handle laundry of residents, staff and community areas.
Though, National Guidelines for Infection Prevention and Control in Healthcare facilities (NGIPC) have been developed by National Center for Disease Control (NCDC), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), but then the larger point of debate is, how serious is the Aged Care sector in India on reading and adopting such guidelines.
While on one hand, we should be thankful to the Charitable Senior Citizen Care Homes for taking care of the poor and underprivileged older people, however the question on quality standards is still a debatable issue.
Since it is not practical nor advisable to simply adopt International Standards on Elderly Care, however it will be naive to ignore the need for standardized care for Senior Citizens.
As a starting point, it is critical that Care Home staff are trained in basic standards of IPC including Laundry Management. I am sure we do not need another COVID-19 to remind us on the importance of Infection Prevention and Control.
Not every standard or guideline is complicated or difficult to implement, there are many simple standards which can be learnt by staff which are easy to understand and incorporate in the daily functioning of a Senior Citizen Care Home.
The attached “Laundry Audit Tool” which is available on the Lancashire County Council website is a simple checklist which can be used by the Care Home Management.
The document can be downloaded here (Laundry Audit Tool for Senior Citizen Care Homes) or can be viewed below