The Rapid Improvement Collaborative was established to support members in benchmarking, conservation strategies, and the implementation of best practices. By leveraging these approaches, the initiative delivers a turnkey linen toolkit designed to reduce waste, enhance operational efficiency, strengthen contract stewardship, and optimize overall linen program performance.

The Rapid Linen Collaborative followed a four-pillar methodology to move from data collection to sustainable optimization:

·       Discovery & Strategy: Conducted member surveys to identify key pain points.  For some facilities, their connection to a GPO contract was not fully executed while for others, the focus pivoted toward conservation, best practices, and committee formation.

·       Analytics &Kickoff: Launched in April 2025, this phase focused on reviewing spend-per-statistic and benchmarking across member hospitals.

·       Vendor Alignment: Utilized signed authorization letters to engage directly with vendors. These discussions uncovered varying fees,policy access, education options, and underutilized resources.

·       Optimization & Toolkit: Roadmaps provided to facilities to support contract optimization, policy adoption and committee formation. Plans established to address billing issues, service expectations,and potential RFP opportunities.

Key Project Considerations:

Ensure Connection to GPO Contract

·       Contracts structured to maximize value

·       Outlines all potential additional charges both allowable and not

·       Defines service expectations, deliverables and quality indicators

·       Terms and conditions are standardized and structured to ensure protection against price increase and service changes

Linen Loss & Replacement

·       Include description and annual calibration of loss linen factors

·       Transparency in calculations

·       Education and training for staff to mitigate these factors

·       Specify a dispute resolution process

Policy

Ensure policies are based on current guidance ie. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Association for Linen Management (ALM)

·       Educate staff to policies

·       Ensure vendor contingency plan is known and is part of the hospital’s emergency operation plan

Data & Reporting

·       Require regular utilization reporting and review with vendor

·       Request reject reports,commodity surcharges, and benchmarking data

·       Ensure the ability to audit invoices against usage data

Governance & Continuous Improvement

·       Linen Committee establishment

·       Ensure individuals with linen oversight are connected to their national organization such as ALM

·       Conduct quarterly vendor performance reviews

·       Require vendor participation in joint KPI review and improvement plans

Tour Laundry Operations

·       Include SC, IP, EVS at minimum

·       Ask if your linen provider is certified i.e. Hygienically Clean Healthcare Certification

The Rapid Linen Collaborative demonstrated that vendor alignment, standardized practices, and robust analytics create a sustainable framework for performance and consistency. This approach serves as a long-term roadmap, ensuring that best practices are embedded, maintained, and continuously refined over time.

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For more information or questions about the Rapid Improvement Collaborative Program, please reach out to Anne Marie Orlando at amorlando@yankeealliance.com.

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