Groote Schuur Hospital Appreciation Wednesday hero: Jacques Vosloo

Jacques Vosloo (53), who works in the Linen Management Services at Groote Schuur, is today’s Appreciation Wednesday hero. The campaign seeks to give appreciation to ordinary heroes who are inspiring others during the Covid-19 pandemic.

As the Principal Linen Supervisor, Jacques and his team must ensure linen arrives in hospital areas on time. “We need to ensure that the correct quantities are distributed. Different areas have different needs. Since Covid-19, the needs in areas have changed. We now have Covid wards that all need personal protective equipment (PPE). There has been an increase of 70% in linen usage in the hospital. When patients move into different areas or even for an x-ray, they need new linen. Some patients would use about three sets of linen per day. The same quantity can apply to staff because they move between wards and would need new PPE in another area.”

Jacques, who lives in Lotus River with his two children and wife, has been working at the Hospital for four years. What appreciates him to come to work is he now realise that linen services are vital during this time and “I am making this difference daily”. “The camaraderie between staff is awesome. Nothing can be a success without teamwork, from the bottom to the top this linen team is the best. At the start, I had to work through the difficulty to understand Covid-19. I lost a close friend and a relative [due] to Covid-19.”

In terms of what the Hospital management has done to accommodate staff during the pandemic, Jacques says, “at the beginning I felt we were a bit slow in implementing things, but I think as it was something new it was all part of the learning process for everyone. What was important is that from the beginning linen was part of the management meetings to plan the distribution of the linen. We thus knew what the needs would be and could give input into how we will change the distribution of linen. For management to include our team from the beginning was vital.”

As it is an anxious time for everyone, he adds that it is important that we understand that not everyone is able to stay safe, some people can’t even afford a mask. “But it is important that we don’t just say stay safe, we need to practice it and have faith in everything that we do. Faith is what will carry us through this period.”

ENDS