The AHE awards and recognition program acknowledges and elevates professionals who have demonstrated the highest level of excellence and leadership. Award recipients are those who work towards advocating and educating themselves on best practices and standards, developing new leaders within a hospital or healthcare facility, and promoting the environmental services profession.

Applications are due June 9, 2017.

AHE has started this initiative to encourage professionals in the field to begin, or continue to refer to the departments and the personnel caring for the healthcare environment as environmental services professionals rather than as housekeepers, janitors and custodians. The staff and management teams responsible for maintaining the clinical environment of care require different skills and competencies from those needed in the commercial cleaning and general maintenance industry and it's time we address this critical distinction.

Please help us redefine healthcare environmental services!

A new AHA television ad urges Congress to protect health coverage for the most vulnerable as it considers legislation to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the American Health Care Act, which the House of Representatives could vote on Thursday, would increase the number of uninsured by 14 million in 2018 and nearly 24 million people over 10 years. The 30-second ad began airing this weekend on national cable and in the Washington, D.C., market.

Dan Weltin, CleanLink
It’s no secret that the cleaning industry is aging.

Matt Poe, American Laundry News
Linen replacement is a top recurring operational cost for the healthcare and hospitality industries.

Amber Cabrera, Health Facilities Management
The Department of Labor describes a safety stand-down as a voluntary event for employers and employees to engage in open, honest, objective, poignant dialogue about safety in the workplace.

Mickey Crowe, CleanLink
In one way, hard floor care is simple and straightforward. Utilize clean solution, clean tools and processes to keep the floors clean.

Becker's Infection Control & Clinical Quality
Hospital room and surface decontamination has become an increasingly important point of focus for infection preventionists, but that wasn't always the case.

Saskia V. Popescu, Contagion Live
Triggered by the rise of C. auris, the CDC released new recommendations for the use of hospital-grade disinfectants effective against Clostridium difficile.

Infection Control Today
According to the CDC's FluView report for the week ending March 11, 2017 (week 10), flu activity remains elevated, but continues to decline.

Mary Rechtoris, Becker's Infection Control & Clinical Quality
Hand hygiene compliance is integral to lowering healthcare-acquired infections around the globe, which are costly and can have serious health repercussions for patients.

Rehan Ijaz
A leader's job is to step into everyone's shoes and find ways to make the path less treacherous, stressful and demoralizing.

Rhett Power, CNBC
It is important that you teach yourself how to see the events in your life as lessons, not simply as blessings or curses.

By Cindy Nuesslein, RN, MBA, FACHE

By Walter Vernon

Make yourself indispensable and advance your career! Plan your education for 2017. Visit AHE’s brand-new 2017 ENGAGE site to learn more about educational courses, podcasts, webinars, and events. And make sure to check out AHE's new EXPRESS Learning Courses. EXPRESS is a mobile learning platform that offers educational podcasts delivered by environmental services and infection prevention thought leaders. You asked for learning opportunities that require less of a time commitment and we delivered!

The AHE Seal of Review and Recognition Program is designed to be a comprehensive review and formalized recognition process aimed at assisting healthcare professionals in selecting training and in-service programs that promote quality, safety and the most favorable outcomes for the healthcare environment and its related disciplines.