KIMSHEALTH · Video testimonial
How KIMSHEALTH’s Quality Head Took Housekeeping Off Paper
Shreeshubha Kurup, GM, Quality and Innovation at KIMSHEALTH in Thiruvananthapuram, explains why her team began its housekeeping digitisation by clearing out the paper checklists. She also describes what changed once supervisor performance, tickets and patient feedback all sat in one app.
Shreeshubha KurupGM, Quality and Innovation, KIMSHEALTH
7:12 · Published Jun 2024 Watch on YouTube(opens in a new tab)
Key moments
- 00:00Clearing out paper housekeeping checklists
- 00:47Supervisor data, healthy competition and appraisals
- 02:09Making housekeeping measurable for accreditation
- 03:07Rollout phases and the humblx team on site
- 03:50Tickets from rounds, tracker and TAT dashboard
- 05:41A quality head's view: one place for housekeeping and feedback
In their words
Curated quotes from the video, lightly edited for readability. Press a time to play that moment.
Before and after
“To my surprise, we found dozens and kilos of papers being used by the housekeeping supervisors to monitor the services. The first step by the humblx team was to eliminate the paper process.”
00:04Shreeshubha Kurup Outcomes
“The best thing we could achieve from the software was that we could see the productivity of the supervisors. It was actually like a competition between supervisors, and it was a positive reinforcement for them.”
00:47Shreeshubha Kurup Proof and trust
“When we say, without a quantifiable thing, that you have to improve, there will always be a debate about it. This was very good data.”
01:23Shreeshubha Kurup Outcomes
“We made it mandatory to tie the performance appraisal of supervisors to the humblx app. The housekeeping managers did not have even a doubt about what to do, because the result was right in front of them.”
01:44Shreeshubha Kurup Proof and trust
“For quality, making housekeeping measurable has a very big positive impact. We were struggling to quantify the services, which is a mandatory requirement for all accreditation, and this app actually helped us quantify them.”
02:16Shreeshubha Kurup Support
“Hats off to the humblx team for the patience and perseverance with which they implemented it. In all the phases, we didn't find any gap from the team. They were available in-house any time to sort out the teething problems.”
03:07Shreeshubha Kurup Before and after
“When the supervisors find a problem, they don't need to go to another system. They can raise a ticket in the app itself, and the turnaround time for updating and closing tickets really improved.”
03:55Shreeshubha Kurup Outcomes
“As a quality head, it covers all the domains of housekeeping quality. I can know who is doing good, which areas are doing the best, which areas need to be improved, and I'm also getting patient feedback.”
05:43Shreeshubha Kurup Outcomes
“This app is actually a one-stop solution for all your housekeeping problems, concerns, tickets and everything.”
06:39Shreeshubha Kurup
In short
KIMSHEALTH replaced paper housekeeping checklists with humblx, tied supervisor appraisals to the inspection data and let supervisors raise tickets during their rounds. For the quality team, housekeeping became measurable, as accreditation requires, and inspections have since risen 3.4× a year.
Why start with the paper checklists?
- The first task was to find every checklist supervisors used to monitor cleaning.
- Ms Kurup was surprised to find "dozens and kilos of papers" across the department.
- humblx replaced them with digital checklists, and the paper system was eliminated completely.
- She adds that going paperless also supports KIMSHEALTH's ESG policy.
How did supervisor data change performance conversations?
- Each inspection is logged on the supervisor's own phone, so results sit against a name.
- Compliance data started a friendly competition, with recognition for full compliance.
- Improvement points stopped being open to debate, because the data showed them.
“We made it mandatory to tie the performance appraisal of supervisors to the humblx app. The housekeeping managers did not have even a doubt about what to do, because the result was right in front of them.”
- Tip: agree the scoring rules with supervisors before linking appraisals to the data.
Why does quality need housekeeping to be measurable?
- In her view, housekeeping draws more complaints than any other hospital service.
- Accreditation requires these services to be quantified, and the app helped her team do it.
- QR code inspections with photo proof show who checked which area and when, so NABH audit records are easier to produce. See our NABH FMS digital compliance playbook.
What did the rollout take?
- Training for everyone, including the entire ground-level housekeeping team.
- Close coordination between in-house staff, her quality team and humblx.
- A humblx team on site for months, through four phases: checklists, implementation, training and roll-out.
How did tickets and feedback come into the same app?
- Supervisors raise a ticket in the app during a round, instead of in a separate system.
- The maintenance team got access too; it duplicated an existing system, but she says ticket turnaround improved considerably.
- At recording time, Excel trackers, desk tickets and a turnaround dashboard were being brought into the app.
- Patient feedback in the same app shows her who is doing well and which areas need to improve.
What has changed at KIMSHEALTH since?
| Measure | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Housekeeping inspections a year | 80,999 (FY2022) | 3.4× (FY2024) |
| Helpdesk turnaround (request to completion) | 172 minutes | 45 minutes (74% faster) |
| Patient feedback a month | 500 (paper register) | 4,448 (8.9×) |
| Patient satisfaction | 3.75 / 5 | 4.6 / 5 |
Confirmed KIMSHEALTH results, not quoted in the video; more than 500 people have been trained on the platform. Full story: KIMSHEALTH case study.
How does this work in humblx?
- [Housekeeping](/solutions/digital-housekeeping/): QR scans, checklists on each supervisor's phone, photo proof, missed-inspection alerts and dashboards.
- [Desk Management](/solutions/helpdesk/): service requests routed to the right team, with turnaround tracking.
- [Feedback Management](/solutions/feedback-management/): QR, tablet and WhatsApp forms; negative feedback becomes a ticket tracked with CAPA.
To see how a similar rollout could work in your hospital, talk to the humblx team.
Frequently asked questions
What did KIMSHEALTH digitise first in housekeeping?
The paper checklists that supervisors used to monitor cleaning. humblx replaced them with digital checklists, and the paper system was eliminated completely.
Can housekeeping inspection data be used in supervisor appraisals?
Yes: KIMSHEALTH made it mandatory to link supervisor appraisals to their compliance data in humblx. Agree the scoring rules with supervisors before you start.
How does digitising housekeeping help with NABH accreditation?
Assessors expect evidence that cleaning happens as planned and is checked. Digital inspections record who checked which area and when, with photo proof.
What results has KIMSHEALTH seen with humblx?
Confirmed results include 3.4× more inspections a year, helpdesk turnaround cut from 172 to 45 minutes and patient feedback up from 500 to 4,448 a month. Satisfaction rose from 3.75 to 4.6 out of 5, with more than 500 people trained on the platform.
