Monday, 8 a.m. The purchasing coordinator at a 120-bed long-term care home in Ontario opens the monthly stocktake. Gloves are down to nine days of par. The 30-by-36 underpads ran short on the dementia unit again. One supplier is quoting three weeks on isolation gowns, and the director of care wants a consumption review. If you run operations at a Canadian LTC, you have lived this morning.
This is the checklist we build orders from. It follows the building: gloves and underpads where residents sleep, gowns and shields where they wash, masks where they eat, bags where waste leaves. Numbers assume 120 beds at 95% occupancy; adjust for case mix, then hand the sheet to your McKesson rep.
Resident rooms: gloves and underpads first
Gloves are the SKU that hurts most when it runs dry. Allow 8 to 12 pairs per resident per day — for 120 beds that is 33,000 to 42,000 pairs a month. Order by size: most floors run 40% medium, 35% large, 15% small, 10% extra-large. We standardize on 4-mil blue nitrile; it survives a full care pass without splitting at the cuff. The CliniEco 4-mil nitrile gloves come in a 100-count box.
Underpads are the second-biggest line in the budget. On a 40-resident unit, expect 4 to 6 heavy-absorbency 30-by-36 pads per resident per day. That is about 5,000 pads a month per unit. We have run Kimberly-Clark and house-brand pads; the spec that matters is 30 × 36 with heavy absorbency, because a thinner pad gets changed twice as often. The CliniEco heavy-absorbency underpads hold a full void without wicking through, cutting linen changes and laundry labour.
Health Canada regulates gloves and underpads under the Medical Devices Regulations; PHAC routine practices set the baseline for when each item is used.
Bathing and hygiene rooms: gowns, masks, splash protection
Gowns earn their keep in peri-care, showers, and tub transfers. Use a Level 2 isolation gown for any splash or soak task. The CliniEco Level 2 SMMS gowns (40 gsm, 50 per pack) meet the AAMI PB70 Level 2 barrier threshold Ontario IPAC programs look for. Budget 2 to 3 gowns per resident per bath day; a three-day rotation means 2,400 to 3,600 gowns a month.
Keep face shields at the tub room door, not in a locked cupboard. Masks and shields are replaced when soiled or damaged; shoe covers and bouffant caps are for splash-risk procedures. The Ontario Fixing Long-Term Care Act, 2021 and O. Reg. 246/22 require every home to run an infection prevention and control program — the supply room is where that program holds or falls apart.
Dining and common areas: masks, shields, serving gloves
Serving and feeding assistance carry their own demand. Count 1 to 2 pairs of gloves per resident per meal for tray pickup, plus masks near residents on droplet precautions. Face shields are what staff tolerate during feeding help — masks fog glasses and residents read faces. Keep a par at every station: 50 masks, 10 shields, 2 boxes of gloves.
When a cart comes back empty, refill it on the spot, not at shift change.
Waste and utility rooms: bags that do not fail
Waste is the quiet line that blows the budget. Mixing biohazard and general waste draws citations during Ontario MOLTC inspections, and regulated waste is billed by weight. Budget one 30-gallon biohazard bag per 10 residents per day — about 360 bags a month — plus half again in black bags.
What goes where
- Biohazard: soiled pads, wound dressings, used PPE
- Black bags: food waste, packaging, paper towels
Monthly usage estimates, 120-bed home
| Care unit | Supply | Monthly estimate | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resident rooms | Nitrile gloves, 4 mil, 100-count box | 330–420 boxes | Mix 40/35/15/10 |
| Resident rooms | Heavy underpads, 30 × 36 in | 5,000–6,000 pads | Per 40-resident unit |
| Bathing | Level 2 gowns, 50-pack | 48–72 packs | 3-day rotation |
| Bathing | Procedure masks | 1,500–2,000 | Droplet precautions |
| Dining | Face shields | 300–400 | Par at every station |
| Waste | Biohazard bags, 30 gal | 350–400 bags | Billed by weight |
Run a three-month consumption report before locking contract volumes; the spread between homes is wider than most teams expect.
Build the order the way you walk the building
Set par by care unit, not by aisle. Gloves and underpads at two weeks of stock; gowns and masks at three, the lead time Ontario distributors are quoting now. Order on a 30-day cycle and track what gets borrowed between units — that is where waste hides.
When the stocktake opens next Monday, the numbers should match the units you walked. If not, the problem is the consumption report, not the checklist. Fix that first, then send the order.
Ordering in volume for a care facility, clinic or home care agency?
Facility buyers do not need an online account to get pricing. Send us your case quantities, ship-to province and required delivery frequency, and we will confirm volume pricing and lead time in writing.
- Request a bulk quote for care facilities — case quantities, par-level planning and standing orders
- View wholesale and institutional product lines
- Contact us — for tenders, RFQs and multi-site accounts
Frequently Asked Questions
How many gloves should a 120-bed long-term care home order per month?
Allow 8 to 12 pairs per resident per day, which works out to roughly 33,000 to 42,000 pairs — or 330 to 420 boxes of 100-count 4-mil nitrile — for a 120-bed home at 95 percent occupancy. Size mix usually runs 40 percent medium, 35 percent large, 15 percent small, and 10 percent extra-large. CliniEco's 4-mil nitrile gloves come in 100-count boxes that fit standard floor ordering.
How many underpads does a 40-resident dementia unit use in a month?
Expect 4 to 6 heavy-absorbency 30-by-36 pads per resident per day, or about 5,000 to 6,000 pads a month for a 40-resident unit. A thinner pad gets changed twice as often, so the spec that matters is 30 x 36 with heavy absorbency. CliniEco heavy-absorbency underpads hold a full void without wicking through, which cuts linen changes and laundry labour.
What isolation gown level should LTC staff use for bathing and peri-care?
Use a Level 2 isolation gown for any splash or soak task such as peri-care, showers, and tub transfers, and budget 2 to 3 gowns per resident per bath day. The CliniEco Level 2 SMMS gowns (40 gsm, 50 per pack) meet the AAMI PB70 Level 2 barrier threshold that Ontario IPAC programs look for.
Which waste bags does a long-term care home need?
Two streams: biohazard and general. Budget one 30-gallon biohazard bag per 10 residents per day — about 360 bags a month — plus half again in black general-waste bags. Soil, wound dressings, and used PPE go in biohazard bags; food waste, packaging, and paper towels go in black bags. Mixing the streams draws citations in Ontario MOLTC inspections and regulated waste is billed by weight, so segregation is both a compliance and a cost issue.
CliniEco Medical is a licensed medical device establishment (MDEL #35334).
decode HAI, SSI, CJD and MDRO acronyms in our infection control pillar article.
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