How RFID technology can speed up and optimise hospital linen management

Hospitals are among the busiest establishments in the healthcare industry. They typically operate on a large scale and are among the largest consumers of linen inventory in any industry. To ensure smooth operations within a hospital, linen managers play an important role in ensuring an adequate stock of high-quality linen items is readily available for use.

Ensuring that linen management functions are carried out efficiently and accurately could put a strain on linen managers who already have multiple responsibilities to take on. Ensuring that they stay within budget when it comes to linen management while also completing other tasks could put a strain on their time management and productivity.

To lessen their workload and pressure, hospital owners or managers should invest in a laundry asset management system with RFID capabilities. The comprehensive, cloud-based software has various functions to simplify and streamline linen handling operations and optimise linen utilisation. This helps to significantly reduce the need for manual tasks, allowing linen managers to focus on more productive, patient-oriented tasks.

That said, how can a laundry asset management system with RFID technology improve hospital operations, especially when it comes to linen management? Let’s explore the possibilities.

Automated linen counting and location tracking

When a linen item is attached with an RFID tag, the linen item has a unique identification number. Information gathered from each linen item can be transmitted to the laundry asset management system. The number of linen items sorted by different categories appears on a reader, which helps linen managers avoid spending time going through individual linen items.

To prevent human-related errors such as the loss of linen items due to misplacement or theft, RFID tags help linen managers track the real-time location of linen items. This prevents hospital managers from having to spend more money to replace the missing linen items.

More efficient linen lifecycle management

RFID technology enables hospital linen managers to monitor the lifecycle of each item, including the number of wash cycles it has undergone. An RFID tag can typically survive 200 wash cycles. This information can be crucial for linen managers when it comes to maintaining quality control and ensuring linen items are replaced at the right time.

The information obtained can also prevent the use of worn-out or damaged linen. This also facilitates cost-saving measures as hospital owners don’t have to seek costly alternatives if their business experiences a linen shortage.

Compliance with hygiene standards

RFID technology assists linen managers in complying with hygiene standards set by their local health department. This ensures that linens are properly cleaned, monitored and replaced when necessary. This is a crucial aspect of linen management as it helps curb the spread of infection and ensure patient safety.

RFID tags can also be integrated with existing hospital applications, allowing seamless data sharing and coordination between linen management and other hospital operations. This integration enhances overall efficiency and reduces silos in data management.

Customised reporting

Using a laundry asset management system, linen managers can access valuable data-driven insights using information obtained from RFID technology. It gives them a detailed breakdown of how they have been managing hospital linen inventory. The types of information that can be obtained include usage patterns, monetary spending, and recurring issues.

By providing accurate data on linen usage and lifecycle, RFID enables hospitals to optimise their linen purchasing and laundry processes. This can improve their cost-saving measures by preventing overstocking, reducing waste, and improving overall resource efficiency.

Invest in a laundry asset management system with RFID technology to improve linen management

Hospital staff must provide an efficient and hassle-free experience to patients, including providing an adequate supply of high-quality linen items while they’re going through medical treatments.

Invest in a laundry asset management system with RFID capabilities today to improve the linen management lifecycle in your hospital, free up your linen manager and hospital staff from the burden of manual tasks, boost workforce productivity, improve patient satisfaction rates, and boost your overall ROI.