Annie Atkins has worked in EVS at Duke for 21 years.

In every area at Duke, there is always someone in charge. It would be great if the larger health community recognized that addressing concerns directly with EVS staff, rather than going through supervisors, could be more effective. Courteous communication could help resolve issues more smoothly. I’ve had some good times while working in the library. It’s a more relaxed environment — I don’t have to rush around, and no one interrupts me. I can work at my own pace, which I really appreciate. Even with the significant changes around me at Duke, honestly, it still feels the same as when I started in terms of how EVS staff aren’t fully recognized or appreciated within the organization.

In Memoriam
We are deeply saddened to share that Annie Atkins, a valued member of Duke’s Environmental Services (EVS) team, passed away on May 9, 2025. She will be remembered with deep appreciation and missed dearly.

Sheila Burton has worked in EVS at Duke for 11 years.

The job of EVS is to prevent illnesses and infections in our patient and visitor populations. A former head of the department wanted to call us “infection control specialists” instead of housekeeper specialists, but that change did not happen. One of the biggest changes that I’ve witnessed here is that the hospital is getting bigger, for example, the addition of Duke Central Tower. My most significant memory from my time here has been helping patients and visitors find their way around the hospital. For example, if a patient is in Duke North (where they parked), but they are supposed to be in Duke South – I walk with them over to South.

Gertrude Carroll has worked in EVS at Duke for 20 years.

Well, we have grown. One of the biggest changes that I’ve witnessed is that training is different from when I was trained. To me the younger people coming in– they run the show. For me, myself, I have no complaints about the job. I do what I’m supposed to do. I get along well with other people that I come in contact with and them with me. That makes the day go by faster and easier with everybody pulling together.

Willie Clayton has worked at Duke for 35 years in three different departments including 29 years in EVS.

My most significant memory from my time working here at Duke is racism. One of the biggest changes that I’ve witnessed since working here has been the pay rate.

“Every day of the week, environmental service workers enter hospital patients’ rooms to clean. Their work may bring a measure of dignity and connection to people who are sick, vulnerable, and away from their familiar homes. Because these workers are assigned to the same specific areas of the hospital, they often develop meaningful relationships with patients and their families. In this 15 minute documentary video, eight housekeepers at Duke Hospital and Duke Regional Hospital talk about their special human relationships with patients and the ways in which they believe their work contributes to healing. It is our hope that the film will enable health care providers and students to see the housekeepers in a new light, and give serious consideration to the vital themes of empathy, humility, and teamwork.”

Keepers of the House is a 15-minute documentary film created in 2019 as a project of the Duke University Health Humanities Lab at the Franklin Humanities Institute; view the film online here.