I'm wondering if people know what on earth I do, and why i claim to be tired when I log on here.

So, this is to show you folks what happens when I work in the NHS (National Health Service) laundry...

Today, I was on the sheet picker. This means keeping the people on the Sheet machine- which is a number of machines combiened to create one big machine to iron, fold and count in batches of ten sheets and large surgical linen- fed with barrows of sheets.

The machine is an early model, and is on loan to see if the idea is feasable for us to have such a machine. Because it's an early model, and we are busy, the poor dear is getting hammered. It's not going as fast, and you still have to get those barrows out for the sheet people to put through the machine (four in total.)

Add three industrial sized tumble dryers to the mix. They are churning out loads of sheets every few minutes. So, you have to get the special hoppers empty, and back under there quick smart.

Today, I did the normal NHS Trust sheets, as well as the Belmont Order, not to mention the small number of rewash rewash sheets (they've been rewashed twice, it's not a typo,) and then there was the single rewash as well. The rewash/rewash rewash sheets come from the passats, which are two tumble dryers in a different part of the laundry.

If someone was to tell me that I processed a couple thousand pieces of linen today, I'd happily believe it.

At least I wasn't on the Passats or the tumblers today... Trying to keep the system fed with empty barrows is a job of work. We have an idiot for a line manager, who should frankly stick to building accomodation for nurses and doctors. Because of his stupidity, we are under-staffed, and not getting new contracts in.

Oh, when I say tumblers, I'm talking about the three that tend to churn out sheets, and another six, making nine main tumblers, mostly-drying out the linen. (If too dry, the linen will scorch and yellow when ironed and pressed.) They are fed by two tunnel-like washing machines. These are not like the washing machine you have at home. They have to sterilise the linen, to prevent infections hitting the patients. The Trust has one of the lowest incidences for Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, Clostridium Difficile, Norovirus, and other infections.

The laundry processes an aveage of 210,000 pieces of linen per week.

I start at eight in the morning, and finish at half four on Mondays, four Tues-Thurs, and half three on Fridays. I don't work weekends, but spend most of that time sleeping and generally recovering from the week.

If this isn't a good enough excuse for me to be flaming knackered, please let me know, I'll re-double my efforts to moving elsewhere in the NHS. ;@) Which will probably be soon, if we end up having an Incident...

Anyway, Hope you all have had a nice day.

Peace!!!! :@)