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Concerns over infection prevention, continued increase in the use of single-use, disposable plastics, and changes in international recycling markets and a lack of U.S.-based material recovery facilities have left operating rooms awash in single-use medical plastics. Additionally, a 0.5 percent contamination rate requirement on marketable medical plastics has challenged the compliance of many hospital recycling programs.
One ubiquitous medical plastic, ”blue wrap,” is estimated to make up almost 20 percent of all operating room waste. While these plastics do an excellent job of keeping… Read More
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Traditional methods of removing fluid medical waste from the operating room are being replaced in many places by fluid management systems that collect and discharge contents directly into the sanitary sewer.
Fluid management systems can replace single-use disposable plastic suction canisters, chemical solidifiers (itself an exposure risk), and significantly reduce waste disposal costs. Additional available safety features include smoke evacuation, precise vacuum control, fluid measurement, air filtration, and enclosed processing which further reduces occupational exposure risk.
Fluid… Read More
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Mercury reduction policies are among the most common environmental commitments in health care. Mercury is toxic to human health, posing a particular threat to the development of the child. To target mercury reduction and elimination as a goal, hospitals and health systems first need to assess where mercury is found within their facilities, which might include:
Clinical devices, such as thermometers, sphygmomanometers, esophageal bougies and dilators, certain tubing, and dental amalgam
Facility equipment, such as switches, relays, thermostats, fluorescent lamps and light bulbs, and batteries… Read More
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Practice Greenhealth is the nation's leading membership and networking organization for organizations in the health care community that has made a commitment to sustainable, environmentally preferable practices.
Health Care Without Harm partnered with the American Hospital Association, Environmental Protection Agency, and the American Nurses Association in September 2001 to create the Hospitals for a Healthy Environment (H2E) program. With funding from the EPA and assistance from HCWH, H2E hired core staff and began outreach efforts to the health care sector with a primary focus of getting… Read More
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Single-use medical devices make up a significant amount of the operating room supply budget and costly regulated medical waste generated by operating rooms every day. Working with a third-party reprocessor to safely collect and purchase these reprocessed devices is one of the biggest opportunities for cost savings and waste reduction in the operating room.
All reprocessing must be done by an FDA-approved vendor according to strict guidelines, including a requirement that every reprocessed device is function tested to guarantee safety and reliability.
HCA Healthcare estimates $29 million in… Read More
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Many hospitals and health systems have identified cost-saving and waste reduction opportunities by taking an in-depth look at the items found in the sterile surgical kits prepared for common procedures.
OR kit reformulation doesn’t need to mean a locked-in, pre-selected group of devices, implants or supplies in every kit. Instead, administrators, surgeons, and nurses are finding big waste reductions, by identifying kit items that routinely go unused during procedures, and then removing them from the preference card and pick list to avoid the unnecessary purchase and then disposal of those… Read More
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Operating rooms can drive big facilities’ cost savings and efficiency improvements through smart, incremental, sustainable practices. Even more important, it’s possible to make these changes while not only maintaining quality patient care but also supporting staff and environmental health.
Though a tiny percentage of a hospital’s total physical footprint, operating rooms have a huge impact on hospital budgets. Operating rooms, on average:
Drive up to 60% of a hospital’s revenue
Are responsible for 40 to 60% of the organization’s total supply costs
Produce more than 30% of a facility’s… Read More
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Chefs and health care food professionals are reimagining hospital food’s potential one meal at a time. Using the health care setting to model healthier food choices and making more sustainable foods available to patients, employees, and visitors has many benefits including:
Improved health and well-being for patients, employees, and visitors
Increased reported satisfaction from both employees and patients on scoring measures
Enhanced employee productivity
Serving as a powerful recruitment tool and regional differentiator for attracting top talent to the hospital.
Greater food service… Read More
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Health care facilities offer healthier menus by working with farmers to purchase locally and sustainably grown products, reducing the amount of meat they purchase and serve, and going beyond their walls to help meet the food needs of their community. This cohort will provide partners a space to learn about new trends and technologies and collaborate with their peers on implementation strategies. Sessions will cover ways to improve the sustainability of food service operations and support healthy food access, local food economies, and resilient food systems.
Target audience: Sustainability… Read More
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Hospitals are environments for healing but many of the products and materials that come into a hospital may be harmful to patients, staff and those in the community. Some products used in health care may contain or release (during production, use or disposal) carcinogens, reproductive toxins, or other hazardous materials. Many of the chemicals used in products have not been adequately tested for toxicity. Additionally, there are a growing number of disposable products in health care and large amounts of packaging creating significant waste, and a variety of products that are energy or water-… Read More
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Practice Greenhealth is the health care sector’s go-to source for information, tools, data, resources, and expert technical support on sustainability initiatives that help hospitals and health systems meet their health, financial, and community goals.
Who We Are
Practice Greenhealth is the leading sustainable health care organization, delivering environmental solutions to more than 1,500 hospitals and health systems in the United States and Canada. Partnership opportunities include hospitals, health systems, community health organizations, NGOs, nonprofits, government, academic institutions, and the health care value chain.