Hospital Housekeeping SOP Template

1.Purpose

To make sure every patient room and piece of shared equipment is cleaned and disinfected to a consistent standard before the next patient is admitted.

2.Scope

Applies to discharge and terminal cleaning of patient rooms, bathrooms and shared equipment in inpatient units. Operating room turnover is covered by a separate SOP.

Definitions

Terminal clean

A thorough clean and disinfection of a room after discharge, transfer or an isolation precaution ends, covering surfaces not touched during daily cleaning.

High-touch surface

A surface frequently touched by patients or staff, such as bed rails, call buttons, door handles and light switches.

Contact time

The length of time a disinfectant must remain visibly wet on a surface to kill the target organisms, as stated on the product label.

EVS

Environmental services, the department responsible for cleaning and disinfecting patient care areas.

3.Responsibilities

EVS Technician

Cleans and disinfects rooms and equipment to standard and reports damage or missing supplies.

EVS Supervisor

Assigns rooms, inspects completed cleans and releases rooms in the bed management system.

Charge Nurse

Confirms when a room is ready for cleaning and flags any precaution status to EVS.

Maintenance Technician

Repairs reported equipment or facility defects and confirms when the room is safe to use.

RACI matrix

R = Responsible, A = Accountable, C = Consulted, I = Informed

4.Materials and PPE

Materials, tools and systems

• →EVS cleaning cart with color-coded microfiber cloths and mop heads
• →Hospital-grade disinfectant approved for the target organism
• →Bed management system or mobile room status app
• →Room cleaning checklist
• →Biohazard waste bags and sharps containers
• →Disposable wipes for shared equipment

Personal protective equipment

• →Disposable gloves
• →Gown or apron for terminal cleans
• →Face shield or mask for splash risk tasks

5.Procedure

1. 5.1

   Receive the room status and precaution flag

   EVS Technician

   Check the bed management system for discharged or transferred rooms and note whether the room requires terminal cleaning due to an isolation precaution.

2. 5.2

   Stock the cart and don PPE

   EVS Technician

   Stock the cart with enough cloths, disinfectant and waste bags for the room type, then put on gloves and additional PPE required for the precaution status.

3. 5.3

   Remove waste and used linen

   EVS Technician

   Remove all trash, used linen and disposable patient care items, placing biohazard waste in the designated bags separate from general trash.

   Warning: Check for sharps or needles before handling linen or trash bags. Report any found sharps instead of removing them by hand.

4. 5.4

   Clean from clean to dirty, top to bottom

   EVS Technician

   Work from the least soiled to most soiled areas and from high surfaces down to the floor, using a fresh cloth section for each surface type.

5. 5.5

   Disinfect high-touch surfaces

   EVS Technician

   Apply disinfectant to bed rails, call buttons, remote controls, door handles, light switches and the overbed table, and leave the surface wet for the full contact time on the product label.

   Checkpoint: Every high-touch surface remains visibly wet for the disinfectant's full contact time before wiping or reuse.

6. 5.6

   Clean and disinfect the bathroom

   EVS Technician

   Clean the sink, toilet, shower and grab bars with the bathroom-designated cloth, working top to bottom and finishing with the toilet last.

7. 5.7

   Clean shared equipment

   EVS Technician

   Wipe down IV poles, monitors and other shared equipment left in the room with a disinfectant wipe compatible with the equipment surface.

8. 5.8

   Mop the floor

   EVS Technician

   Mop the floor last, working from the far corner of the room toward the door, and use a wet floor sign until the surface is dry.

9. 5.9

   Restock room supplies

   EVS Technician

   Restock hand hygiene product, tissues, linen and any bedside supplies according to the room type standard.

10. 5.10

    Report defects

    EVS Technician

    Report any damaged furniture, fixtures or equipment to maintenance through the work order system and mark the room out of service if it affects patient safety.

11. 5.11

    Update room status

    EVS Technician

    Set the room to clean or ready for inspection in the bed management system once all steps are complete.

12. 5.12

    Inspect and release the room

    EVS Supervisor

    Inspect the room against the checklist, paying special attention to high-touch surfaces and the bathroom, and release it for the next admission if it passes.

    Checkpoint: Every terminal clean is inspected before the room is released for a new admission.

6.Quality checks

• →Supervisor inspects 100 percent of terminal cleans before room release.
• →High-touch surfaces pass an ultraviolet marker or fluorescent gel check during audits.
• →Disinfectant contact time is observed and documented on the room checklist.
• →Biohazard waste is separated correctly from general waste on every clean.

7.Records

• →Room cleaning checklist signed by the technician
• →Terminal clean inspection results
• →Biohazard waste disposal log
• →Maintenance defect reports

8.KPIs

• →Average minutes per terminal clean
• →First-time inspection pass rate
• →Room turnaround time from discharge to ready
• →Environmental audit compliance rate

9.Common mistakes

• →Wiping disinfectant off a surface before the full contact time has passed.
• →Using the same cloth for the bathroom and the bedside table.
• →Marking a room clean before high-touch surfaces are disinfected.
• →Mixing biohazard waste with general trash.

10.Revision history