ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE

The successful candidate will be expected to meet the following desirable criteria:
Have a good general standard of education
Good communication skills both written and verbal
Ability to work as part of a team and assist other members of staff
An interest and commitment to providing a clean, safe environment for patients in a health care environment
Previous cleaning experience
Eligibility Criteria should reflect approved eligibility criteria as set out by the HSE. This information can be located at: https://www.hse.ie/eng/staff/jobs/eligibility-criteria/

OTHER REQUIREMENTS SPECIFIC TO THE POST

The successful candidate will be expected to meet the following desirable criteria:
Ability to work as part of a team and assist other members of staff
An interest and commitment to providing a clean, safe environment in a health care environment
Previous cleaning experience
Principal Duties & Responsibilities
The above Job Specification is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all duties involved and consequently, the post holder may be required to perform other duties as appropriate to the post which may be assigned to him / her from time to time and to contribute to the development of the post while in office.

PURPOSE OF POST

Household staff are members of the ward team, working with other ward staff to assist the patients, and at all times ensuring smooth and safe functioning in all areas of the ward. All wards care for different categories of patients and variation of duties may occur, as all patients are individuals. The Clinical Nurse Manager or Nurse-in-Charge will give direction on these duties. In general the household staff duties entail kitchen duties and ward duties.

WARD DUTIES

Maintain a clean hygienic ward.
This includes:
Cleaning toilets and bathrooms morning and evening and as required during the day.
Vacuum cleaning corridors/wards daily.
Emptying bins.
Helping out in the kitchen at certain times.
Washing down bed frames.
Beds pulled out and washed behind.
Bed frames washed.
High dusting.
Washing walls/skirting boards.
Kitchen presses emptied and washed and any other cleaning identified by themselves or by the Clinical Nurse Manager.
Pulling out lockers and cleaning.
Transport linen.
Empty large waste bins.
Use large machinery to wash floors.
Assist staff with discharge cleaning on other units.
At certain times during the day e.g. meal times, the person on
ward duties will be expected to assist the person in the kitchen i.e. to wash dishes.
This job is flexible and other duties may arise on a day to day basis and are at the discretion of the Clinical Nurse Manager.

KITCHEN DUTIES

There is one person full-time in the kitchen but the duties and responsibilities of household staff vary from ward to ward and would encompass the following.
Preparation and handing out of trays for bed bound patients.
Setting of tables in dining-room for ambulant patients.
Safe handling of food as it arrives to the ward.
Maintaining correct temperature of food.
Assisting in the serving of meals.
Collection of used trays from wards.
Washing dishes/food trays etc.
Collecting and replacing jugs of water for patients use.
Maintaining a clean hygiene kitchen at all times.
Stock control, ordering/checking supplies with Clinical Nurse Manager/ person-in-charge.
Cleaning on ward if duties in kitchen/dining area completed.
This job is flexible and other duties may arise on a day to day basis and are at the discretion of the Clinical Nurse Manager.

QUALITY, RISK & SAFETY RESPONSIBILITIES

It is the responsibility of all staff to:
Participate and cooperate with legislative and regulatory requirements with regard to Quality, Risk and Safety.
Participate and cooperate with external agencies on safety initiatives as required.

Participate and cooperate with internal and external evaluations of hospital structures, services and processes as required, including but not limited to:

• National Standards for Safer Better Healthcare.
• National Standards for the Prevention and Control of Healthcare Associated Infections.
• HSE Standards and Recommended Practices for Healthcare Records Management
• Safety audits and other audits specified by the HSE or other regulatory authorities.
• To initiate, support and implement quality improvement initiatives in their area which are in keeping with the hospitals continuous quality improvement programme.

It is the responsibility of all managers to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements for Quality, Safety and Risk within their area/department
Specific Responsibility for Best Practice in Hygiene

Hygiene in healthcare is defined as “the practice that serves to keep people and the environment clean and prevent infection. It involves preserving one’s health, preventing the spread of disease and recognizing, evaluating and controlling health hazards.”

• It is the responsibility of all staff to ensure compliance with hospital hygiene standards, guidelines and practices.
• Department heads/ managers have overall responsibility for best practice in hygiene in their area.
• It is mandatory to complete hand hygiene training every 2-years and sharps awareness workshops yearly.