DuBois, Pa.-based Penn Highlands Healthcare is paying closer attention to linens provided by Dubois-based Paris Healthcare Linens Services after a report from Pittsburgh-based UPMC found the laundry company's ventilation system blew fungus onto linens.
Trib Live reports Penn Highlands has started inspecting its linens more closely as a result of the UPMC investigation.
"We are initiating a 'linen team' with members from supply chain and clinical areas, who will help monitor and improve utilization and quality of linens," Penn Highlands officials told employees in a memo, according to Trib Live. "We are reinforcing our inspection process of linens upon and after delivery." The memo also encouraged employees to inspect linens themselves and said "linens that are damp, visibly soiled or appear irregular are not to be accepted and should be returned to the vendor."
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In a statement emailed to Trib Live, Paris Companies CEO Dave Stern said, "As part of the regular course of doing business, Paris Companies has always encouraged its customers to tour our facilities. This enables them to see firsthand how we process their linens. We have a long history of meeting or exceeding accreditation standards and regulatory guidelines for our industry, which demonstrates our ongoing commitment to quality and safety."
UPMC conducted an investigation into Paris, its linens provider, in 2016 after a deadly mold outbreak temporarily shut down UPMC's transplant program in 2015. The report was released in January this year.
Paris has since been added as a defendant in two malpractice lawsuits against UPMC, according to Trib Live.