Where’s the linen? 
 
That’s a question commonly asked of the laundry. Although it’s quite possible that the inquirer may be questioning the whereabouts of sheets and pillowcases, they could be asking about any one of a number of patient-care items. Yet, strangely enough, in the mind of the user, if the item comes from the laundry, is it ‘linen’?
 
Just what is ‘linen’?
 
While the term linen is used generically, real linen comes from the flax plant. The botanical name of flax derives from the Latin Linum usitatissimum and refers to ...