Conference Speakers

Patti Costello

Executive Director, Association for the Health Care Environment (AHE)

BIOGRAPHY

Patti Costello is the executive director of the Association for the Healthcare Environment (AHE) a professional membership group of the American Hospital Association (AHA) in Chicago. Ms. Costello has been with AHA for 25 years, and the executive director of AHE for 18.

Ms. Costello has been a contributor to numerous trade publications and periodicals in the fields of sterile processing, central supply, environmental services and commercial foodservice safety. She served as an original contributing author to the National Restaurant Association’s foodservice sanitation and ServSafe training manuals and the AHA sterile processing technician training manual. She has conducted over 350 hands on workshops and seminars at the national and chapter levels on employee engagement, managing change, the role of the environment in the transmission of infection, foodservice sanitation and safe alcohol service training.

Costello is a designated Master Trainer for AHA’s Certified Health Care Environmental Services Technician (CHEST) and the Certified Surgical Technician (CSCT training programs. She has extensive practical expertise and experience in health care, hospitality and foodservice operations. She is also an avid sports fan whose favorites are the Chicago Cubs and Bears but hockey and the Chicago Blackhawks are her sports passion. Her bucket list includes traveling to Australia, France, Japan and Italy. 

---

Healthcare Wipe Insights: AHE's Annual Trends Data Report

The Association for the Health Care Environment (AHE) is the recognized authority on the healthcare environment. AHE represents environmental services (EVS) directors, managers, supervisors, suppliers and consultants that direct and manage care for the patient and resident care environment across all care settings, including hospitals, long term care, continuing care retirement communities and ambulatory care. EVS staff are responsible for the cleaning and disinfection of hospitals and critical in the role of healthcare associated infection prevention.

AHE represents, defines and advances the professionals responsible for care of the health care environment to ensure quality outcomes and healthy communities. Each year, AHE surveys their members to identify trends in environmental services and healthcare. 2018 was the fifteenth year AHE has generated this report, providing data trends and emerging ideas from thought leaders on major issues, challenges, and opportunities facing the environmental services profession and its related disciplines.

This presentation will provide an overview and results from AHE’s 2018 Annual Trends Data report, based on 228 responses from EVS professionals in North America. Special focus will be spent on topics relevant to INDA members, such as sustainability, cleaning and disinfecting chemical, dry and pre-saturated wipe usage, as well as customer drivers for product selection.

Audience members will gain a better insight on what drives end users to select wipes in this segment, where there are still gaps available for innovation, and what requirements are needed to meet their specific cleaning and disinfecting needs.