Household Operative, St Peters Ward

Position Summary:

The physical environment, facilities and resources are managed to minimise the risk of infection to service users, staff and visitors.

The risk of the spread of infection is significantly reduced when the physical infrastructure and environment meet the standards expected under the national hygiene audit scheme. This post is intended to support the nursing staff at ward level to meet these standards.
The main areas of concern to this post are patient equipment, safe handling and disposal of linen, safe handling and disposal of sharps, safe handling and disposal of waste, hand hygiene facilities and the general environment.

Principal Duties and Responsibilities:

• Wash and clean all kitchen cupboards and keep presses tidy as per pantry cleaning schedules.Complete cleaning schedules as per unit policy and in compliance with the hospital hygiene standards2.
• Management of Patient Equipment and the Dialysis Stations. All patient equipment (close contact equipment and direct contact equipment) is subject to decontamination after the patients use, prior to equipment going for repair or disposal and on a routine basis. Report faulty any patient equipment or furniture to Clinical Nurse Manager’s (CNM) in Unit 1.There are daily, weekly and monthly cleaning schedules which the household operative must adhere to, and which must be signed off as work is completed. There are also specific schedules to be followed upon the completion of the patient’s dialysis session. These schedules are held at local level and are reviewed and signed off by the Clinical Nurse Manager’s (CNM) in the unit on a regular basis.The household operative must ensure that the correct cleaning solution and disinfection agents (as per hospital policy) are being used when decontaminating patient equipment. Note all hospital polices and guidelines are available on Q Pulse. Cleaning solutions must be correctly labelled.Decontaminate beds, pillows, bed tables and lockers after discharge of each patient and ensure that fire blankets are correctly positioned on the bed. Remove used mineral bottles, papers or other waste items from the patient’s bed area with the patients consent. Mop up spillages as they occur outside contract cleaning hours.
• The general environment. - Attention to the linen storage rooms, corridor, patient waiting area.
  Ensure the areas are clean, tidy and free from inappropriate items. Liaise with cleaning staff regarding areas for priority cleaning. Keep these areas clean and tidy at all times i.e. remove any papers or used magazines and waste, ventilate the areas by opening the windows. Mop up any spillages as they occur. Place any hazard slippage signs if required. Liase with the cleaning staff to deal with any larger spillage or if cleaning is required. Keep a clean environment, making sure that the Patients’ waiting areas, corridors and reception areas are well maintained and properly ventilated.
• Safe Handling and Disposal of Linen.
  The household operative must be aware of the hospital policy available on Q Pulse , regarding the safe handling and disposal of linen and should ensure that:
  a. The linen press is kept clean and tidy and free from inappropriate items in compliance with hygiene standards.
  b. Clean linen is stored in a clean designated area separate from used linen.
  c. Clean linen is free from stains and dust.
  d. Used linen is segregated in appropriate colour coded bags according to policy and prepared for collection
  e. That laundry bags are disposed of when they are no more than 1/3 full
  f. Bags are tagged and stored correctly prior to disposal
  g. Linen skips and the appropriate bags are taken to the area required (staff are not to carry soiled linen or leave it on the floor)
  h. Gloves and apron are worn when handling contaminated linen
  i. The green linen skip on the main corridor is zipped closed after disposing of linen.
  j. There is a laminated poster in the linen press regarding the colour coding for linen – if not, inform the CNM.
  k. The trolley used to transport the linen to the dialysis station it is clean and in good repair.
  l. The linen trolley is washed with teepol & water before each use.
  m. The linen trolley with clean linen is not stored in a dirty area i.e. Dirty utility or near waste bins area.
  n. That all linen is handled in clean area only.
  o. The laundry bag holders are washed daily with detergent i.e. teepol.
  p. Order linen supplies as required. Inform the Clinical Nurse Manager if there are any issues related to adequate supply
• Safe Handling and Disposal of Waste/Dirty utility Room Maintenance
  The household operative should be aware of the hospital policy on the safe handling and disposal
  of waste available on Q Pulse. Wear gloves and aprons are worn when handling domestic waste. In the absence of contract cleaners the bins are emptied. Ensure that bags are not overfilled. Bags should be no more than 2/3 full. Tag waste according to hospital policy. Ensure that waste bins are clean, in good repair and labels on bins are intact – if not. Inform Clinical Nurse Manager on duty. Attend a training session yearly which includes the correct and safe disposal of waste i.e. StandardPrecautions and Segregation of Waste training. Daily cleaning of commodes. Maintain clean sluice environment.
• Hand Hygiene Facilities
  The household operative must ensure that in the absence of contract cleaners:
  a. Hand hygiene sinks are free from clutter and inappropriate objects.
  b. Soap dispensers, hand gel dispensers and hand cream dispensers are replaced when empty – it is not permissible to “top-up” containers/dispensers.
  c. Nozzles on soap, hand gel and hand cream dispensers are clean and free from build up.
  d. There is a adequate supply of paper hand towels.
  e. Liaise with cleaning staff regarding cleaning.
  f. Keep WC's tidy i.e. remove unnecessary items.
• Communication
  Give clear accurate verbal handover at end of shift to household operative or Healthcare Assistant.
  Check with the Clinical Nurse Manager/ senior staff on duty regarding unit supplies needs.
  Report promptly any medical incidents related to patients or staff to the nursing staff.
  Report promptly any patient’s complaints to the CNM / senior staff nurse regarding.
  Report promptly to the Clinical Nurse Manager /Senior staff nurse any patient related risk incidents
  Receive all visitors to the unit with courtesy.
  Be cooperative, considerate and flexible with colleagues and co-workers.
  Have a positive attitude to direction and guidance.
  Respect the rights and dignity of all patients.
  Be aware of Beaumont Hospital policy on Dignity and Respect at work, available on Q Pulse.
  8. Ward Clean Utility Rooms
  Assist nursing staff in checking in and storage of supplies, as required.
  Ensure the areas are clean, tidy and free from inappropriate items.
• TRAINING
  The post holder will be given in-service training as per hospital policy. The Clinical Nurse Managers will undertake this responsibility and will deal with the day to day issues and problems which may arise.
  The training will include instruction relation to infection control, the use of disinfectants and chemical agents and the correct disposal of linen and waste.
  Attend hospital based hand hygiene and standard precautions training yearly.
  Attend Fire and Safer Manual handling, Food Hygiene and Heart Saver training as per hospital
  Complete all mandatory online training via BORIS as required.
  Attend any further training as deemed necessary by Clinical Nurse Manager.
  Yearly professional development and assessment is carried out by Clinical Nurse Manager.

Selection Criteria:
Selection criteria outline the qualifications, skills, knowledge and/or experience that the successful candidate would need to demonstrate for successful discharge of the responsibilities of the post.
Applications will be assessed on the basis of how well candidates satisfy these criteria.

Candidates must have at the latest date of application:
1. Professional Qualifications, Experience, etc.
a) Eligible applicants will be those who on the closing date for the competition:
i) Possess a Junior Certificate (or equivalent qualification).
And
ii) Have a minimum of 3 years working in a relevant industry with experience of managing large numbers of staff in a busy environment.
And
b) Candidates must have the personal competence and capacity to properly discharge the duties of the role


Desirable:
• Previous experience of working in Hospital
• Display personal initiative
• Values others opinions
• Communicates clearly and concisely in a timely manner
• Identifies quality as a key factor in the provision of services
• Constantly reviews means of improvement.