The Housekeeping lead is responsible for providing strategic leadership, operational excellence, and quality governance for the hospital’s housekeeping, linen, laundry, and public area management. The role ensures NABH compliance, infection control alignment, patient-centric service delivery, and cost-efficient management of outsourced and in-house teams.

This position plays a crucial role in ensuring a safe, hygienic, and patient-friendly environment across all clinical and non-clinical areas, including high‑risk zones like OTs, ICUs, ER, and procedure rooms.

Key Responsibilities

1. Strategic Leadership & Planning

• Define housekeeping strategy aligned with hospital’s operational priorities and quality standards.
• Create annual operating plans, manpower matrices, and resource allocation models.
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives using Lean, 5S, Kaizen, RCA/CAPA methodologies.
• Drive innovation in cleaning technology, chemical programs, and automation (auto scrubbers, UV disinfection devices, microfiber systems).

2. Operations Leadership & Hospital-Wide Hygiene Management

• Oversee 24/7 housekeeping operations across IPD, OPD, ICU, OT, Cath Lab, ER, Radiology, Dialysis, CSSD-adjacent areas, Admin & Public Zones.
• Ensure strict compliance with zoning principles, rapid response cleaning, and bed turnaround management.
• Implement terminal cleaning protocols, bio-cleaning cycles, and ICU/OT readiness standards.
• Define and audit cleaning schedules, frequency charts, zone-wise checklists, and duty rosters.

3. Infection Control & Regulatory Compliance

• Collaborate with Infection Control Team (ICT) to enforce correct cleaning practices, disinfectant usage, dilution logs, and PPE compliance.
• Ensure strict adherence to Biomedical Waste (BMW) Rules: CPCB/MPCB and NABH requirements.
• Oversee spill management readiness, needle-prick prevention protocols, and disinfection SOP compliance.
• Lead internal audits and respond to NABH, JCI, and BMC inspections.

4. Vendor, Contract, and Stakeholder Management

• Manage housekeeping, laundry, pest control, and chemical vendor contracts & SLAs.
• Conduct performance reviews, negotiate renewals, ensure manpower adequacy, and evaluate AMC partners.
• Liaise with Nursing, Operations, Biomedical, CSSD, Security, F&B, and HR for seamless service delivery.
• Drive issue resolution, escalations, and interdisciplinary coordination.

5. Quality Assurance, Audits & Reporting

• Develop, implement, and upgrade SOPs, policies, and quality frameworks.
• Conduct daily rounds with supervisors; review ATP/fluorescent marker test results (where applicable).
• Prepare dashboards for internal quality committees:
• Audit scores
• BMW compliance
• Cleaning frequency adherence
• OT/ICU readiness
• Patient area cleanliness scores
• Lead RCA for repeat complaints and non‑conformities; drive CAPA closures.

6. Linen & Laundry Governance

• Maintain par levels for all clinical areas—IPD, ICU, OT packs, sterile linen, F&B linen, scrubs.
• Oversee laundry operations (in-house or outsourced), ensuring infection-free workflows.
• Control losses, rejection rates, stain removal performance, and consumption metrics.
• Audit segregation, wash cycles, drying, ironing, and packing.

7. Budgeting & Cost Optimization

• Develop annual budget for housekeeping Opex & Capex.
• Manage manpower deployment, consumables, chemicals, and machine maintenance within budget.
• Optimize costs through route planning, consumption analysis, and vendor rationalization.
• Ensure efficient procurement in alignment with hospital purchasing policies.

8. Team Leadership & Development

• Lead a large workforce including supervisors, executives, stewards, and outsourced staff.
• Build capability through structured training (infection control, BMW, etiquette, fire safety).
• Drive performance management, coaching, and succession planning.
• Create a culture of safety, punctuality, and quality ownership.

Qualifications & Experience

• Graduate in Hospitality, Facility Management, Hotel Management, or related field.
• 10–15 years of housekeeping/facility experience with at least 5 years in a hospital leadership role.
• Strong knowledge of:
• NABH standards
• Infection Control & BMW rules
• Hospital zoning & cleaning protocols
• Linen & laundry management
• Vendor and AMC governance
• Experience handling large teams and multi‑specialty hospital operations (200+ beds preferred).

Core Competencies

• Leadership & Team Building
• Strong Understanding of Clinical Area Requirements (OT, ICU, ER)
• Strategic Planning & Resource Optimization
• Quality & Audit Orientation
• Effective Communication & Stakeholder Management
• Emergency Response Readiness
• Data-driven decision making
• Customer Service & Patient-Care Sensitivity

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

• NABH compliance & audit scores
• Biomedical Waste segregation compliance rate
• Bed Turnaround Time (discharge → ready)
• OT/ICU terminal cleaning compliance
• Patient feedback cleanliness score (IPD & OPD)
• Public area audit scores
• Linen loss %, rejection %, par level compliance
• Vendor SLA adherence
• Chemical consumption % vs benchmark
• Helpdesk ticket closures within TAT

Tools & Systems Exposure (Preferred)

• CAFM/CMMS systems (for ticketing & audits)
• Excel/Power BI dashboards
• RFID/Barcoding systems for linen (if applicable)
• Automated cleaning technologies