KOSA Medical · Application

Hygiene Consumables Checklist for Nursing Homes and Long-Term Care Facilities

A room-by-room checklist of the disposable hygiene consumables a long-term care facility needs — underpads, briefs, bibs, bed sheets, pillow cases, gloves and gowns — with par levels and the ordering logic behind them.

Published September 9, 2026 · Updated September 9, 2026 · KOSA Medical

Key Takeaways

Group consumables by use point so nothing is missed at reorder time.
Underpads and briefs are the two volume drivers — set par levels first.
Do not forget the low-volume items that cause emergency purchases.
Set par levels from measured consumption, then review quarterly.
Keep a one-month buffer on the two fastest movers.

Resident room — personal care

Item	Why it is on the list	Par level basis
Disposable underpads (2–3 sizes)	Bed and chair protection, highest volume item	Pieces per resident per day
Adult briefs / pull-ups	Personal containment, second volume driver	Changes per resident per day
Incontinence pads and liners	Light and ambulatory residents	Per ambulatory resident
Disposable bibs and bibs on roll	Mealtimes, protects clothing	Per resident per meal
Disposable bed sheets and pillow cases	Infection control, reduces laundry load	Per bed change cycle
Disposable washcloths and towels	Bed bathing, skin care	Per care episode

Care station and clinical areas

Examination and procedure underpads — for in-room procedures and dressing changes.
Disposable gloves — nitrile or vinyl, sized, at every care station.
CPE or isolation gowns — for isolation and high-contact care episodes.
Face masks — for outbreak periods and visitor policy.
Couch paper rolls — for examination couches and treatment rooms.
Disposable toilet seat covers — shared bathrooms.
Waste bags and clinical waste liners — sized to the bins actually in use.

Housekeeping and common areas

Laminated tissue or absorbent surface protection for dining and activity rooms.
Chair protectors for common areas and wheelchairs.
Pet pads where the facility hosts therapy or resident animals — a frequent oversight.
Panty liners and light pads for the ambulatory and respite population.

Setting par levels that actually work

1. Measure real consumption for two weeks

Count pieces issued per resident per day, not pieces ordered.

2. Set the reorder point

Daily consumption × lead time in days + safety stock.

3. Set the buffer

One month on the two fastest movers, two weeks on everything else.

4. Assign one owner per use point

A named person reorders; shared responsibility means nobody reorders.

5. Review quarterly

Census and acuity change; par levels set at opening rarely still fit a year later.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which disposable consumables does a nursing home use most?

Disposable underpads and adult briefs are almost always the two highest-volume items, followed by gloves and disposable bed linen. Setting accurate par levels for those two items has the biggest effect on both cost and stock-out risk.

How should par levels be calculated?

Measure actual consumption per resident per day for a couple of weeks, multiply by the supplier lead time in days, and add a safety buffer. Habit-based ordering is the usual cause of both overstock and emergency purchases.

What items are most often forgotten on a consumables list?

Chair protectors for common areas, pet pads where therapy animals visit, toilet seat covers for shared bathrooms, and spare couch paper rolls for treatment rooms. These are low volume but cause emergency orders when they run out.

Are disposable bed sheets worth the extra cost over linen?

They reduce laundry handling and are easier to manage during outbreaks or incontinence episodes. Many facilities use them selectively — for high-acuity residents and outbreak periods — rather than replacing linen across the whole facility.

How often should the consumables list be reviewed?

Quarterly, and immediately after any change in census or acuity mix. A list drawn up when the facility opened rarely matches its needs a year later.