Hospital assistant rescues scrubs from waste

Debbie, a former singer and music teacher, joined Practice Plus Group Surgical Centre, Gillingham, Kent, two years ago and while she wore her smart uniform, she noticed that her theatre colleagues’ scrubs were often frayed around the trouser hem from being too long, or worn out around the pockets. The changing room at the centre, which specialises in day case procedures such as endoscopy, hernia repair and cataract surgery, was often untidy as everyone needed to rifle through the neatly packed piles of clean scrubs to find the smartest pairs.

Debbie decided to perform her own operations- taking any frayed scrubs home with her to stitch them as good as new.

Debbie said: “We are all very proud of our centre and the quality of patient care we deliver. I just wanted to make sure that the first impressions we gave matched that quality, I wanted to make life a little bit easier for my colleagues, make sure the changing room was nice and tidy, save money and avoid unnecessary wastage by breathing new life into scrubs that were otherwise perfectly good. I’m good with a needle and thread and thought it better to just fix them!”

Over the following few months, Debbie kept a record of the time spent sewing and would take time off in lieu in return. Gradually, as the frayed scrubs were repaired, the changing room became more and more tidy as colleagues could easily find a good set of scrubs.

“I got such a kick out of coming in and seeing beautifully neat piles of good quality scrubs all ready to go for the day and the shelves still being neat in the afternoon!” Debbie added.

Debbie did such a good job she’s hardly had any to fix for the last few months as her repairs have stood the test of time.

Mark Gilmour, Hospital Director at Practice Plus Group Surgical Centre and its sister site in Ilford, said:

“Debbie’s an absolute star and we’re really grateful for her time and efforts. It’s such a small thing in a busy surgical centre but one that makes a big difference, not only to our staff experience but towards our efforts to be more environmentally sustainable.”

Practice Plus Group Surgical Centre, Gillingham, formerly known as the Will Adams NHS Treatment Centre, treats both NHS patients and private patients who choose Wellsoon private healthcare from Practice Plus Group.

NHS patients can access procedures such as endoscopy with much shorter waiting times than in larger NHS hospitals. Just ask your GP to refer you to the centre and you can be seen in weeks, not months.

For more information visit https://practiceplusgroup.com/hospitals/gillingham/