Celebrating National Healthcare Environmental Services Week

Do you know anyone who doesn’t like to be acknowledged and appreciated for doing a job well? I don’t. Maybe acknowledgement is the log that fuels their fire but, deep down, everyone likes to be appreciated in some way.

Now is the time to start thinking and planning for the celebration of National Healthcare Environmental Services Week. 

Each year we use this opportunity to show appreciation and recognition for the extraordinary teamwork required to care for the complex health care environment. The clinical and support services teams all depend on the critical, yet often unsung, role environmental services plays in maintaining a high-quality patient and resident care environment.

National Healthcare Environmental Services Week is the perfect time for everyone to demonstrate their appreciation for the quality of the work of the environmental services team, the outcomes from that work, and the value that the work delivers to everyone working in a health care facility.

Beginning Sept. 10 through Sept. 16, AHE invites you to join all national and international health care environmental services professionals to acknowledge and celebrate the outstanding work of these extraordinary specialists. We are honored to celebrate this important week with you and your team whether or not you are an AHE member.

The following week, AHE will host its Annual Exchange Conference and Solution Center Sept. 17–20 in Orlando, Fla. At the conference we will provide a challenging, comprehensive and diverse educational program that delivers a best-in-class, advanced-level learning experience for attendees. 

The conference schedule includes keynote addresses, educational sessions, certification examinations, learning labs and networking opportunities. We also will announce our annual award winners, including the Environmental Services Department of the Year award, which is given to hospital departments and published in Health Facilities Management magazine, and the Heart of Healthcare, awarded to one outstanding environmental services technician.

On behalf of the leadership team and staff, we appreciate the many contributions you and your teams have made to ensure the health and safety of our patients. Your continued focus on patient satisfaction and sustainability efforts will result in increased efficiencies and positive health outcomes. We Are Environmental Services! Keep up the great work!

Please visit www.ahe.org for more details on these exciting events.

Patti Costello is executive director of the Association for the Healthcare Environment.

AHE INSIGHTS

Valuable resources available from AHE

Visit AHE's website to learn more about the following resources. 

Practice guidance available

Practice Guidance for Healthcare Environmental Cleaning, second edition, helps to define and advance the professionals responsible for care of the health care environment to ensure high-quality outcomes and healthy communities. This manual provides evidence-based research, guidance and recommended practices that should be considered for inclusion in health care environmental services departments. Because each facility has its own needs, this resource has been designed to enhance an existing program.

Certificate of Mastery in Infection Prevention

This certificate is a robust program that provides environmental services professionals with requisite knowledge to meet the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' requirements for a trained professional in infection prevention and control specific to the clinical environment of care. 

Certified Healthcare Environmental Services Technician Certificate

This certification focuses on critical areas of competency for front-line technicians, including infection prevention, quality of care, patient outcomes and experience.