If you’ve ever worked with a medical laundry service, you’ve probably seen the signature star-spangled red-blue-and-white HLAC Accredited badge. What exactly is it and what does it mean for your facility? Let’s break down the importance of HLAC Certification in medical laundry service.
The Healthcare Laundry Accreditation Council (HLAC) is an independent, nonprofit organization whose aim is to inspect healthcare laundry service providers. The council is made up of a 12-member, voluntary Board of Directors. They boast extensive professional backgrounds in commercial laundry, infection control, and even as federal government regulators.
The accreditation is a non-mandatory, objective inspection process that looks into essential aspects of healthcare laundry processing. Here’s everything you need to know about the accreditation:
The HLAC Accreditation Process is one of the most comprehensive inspections specially dedicated to healthcare laundry facilities. HLAC scrutinizes the quality and integrity of the most important components of a service provider’s processes. This includes the laundry equipment, facility design, operational practices, as well as employee training and qualifications. The inspection covers the entirety of the laundry process – from handling and transporting to cleaning and packaging. In short, HLAC looks into how a facility ensures that the linens and garments they process are clean and safe for healthcare use.
HLAC is an independent, non-profit accreditation body that uses federal- and industry-recognized standards in its accreditation. It does not have members or member companies. Accredited companies are just that – accredited, not sworn-in members of the organization. You can trust that any company bearing the accreditation has been objectively scrutinized and verified.
Among the most important components of HLAC’s standards is the company’s compliance with federal regulations and guidelines for healthcare laundry. This includes OSHA regulations on Bloodborne Pathogen Exposure Control Standards, the American National Standards Institute, and the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation, among others.
Partnering with an HLAC-accredited laundry service provider brings many benefits. Here are some of them:
Now that you understand the importance of HLAC Certification in medical laundry service, sign up with Century Linen! Call us at 1-800-721-7648 or fill out this form for more information about our services.