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Business World |
April 2015
144
lion pounds of laundry a year, Shared Hospi-
tal Services relies heavily on its 100 employ-
ees ranging from the laundry and production
facility to the plant and delivery team. With
no plans to expand from outside of their cur-
rent 50-75 mile radius in Portsmouth, Vir-
ginia, the organization has the ability to take
on additional poundage, but will choose a
calculated, customer and people centric ap-
proach to growth.
“When a patient comes to the hospital
they’re ill, – that is the reason they’re there,”
Berge said. ”How do I affect their overall ex-
perience? They’re lying on my sheet, their
head is on my pillow case, my blanket covers
them, so it is important these products de-
livered to them are processed properly, meet
all of the HLAC requirements but also be
a quality product that the patient will feel
comfortable with.”
Centrally located within the market they
serve, Shared Hospital Services works close-
ly with the Healthcare Laundry Accredita-
tion Council (HLAC) to ensure that work-
ers are adhering to safety standards and that
the laundry is producing clean linens. A vol-
untary venture, the accreditation provides a
comprehensive audit of operational process-
es, equipment and employee practices. Fol-
lowing these guidelines prompts the organi-