A Life Cycle Assessment of Reusable and Single-Use Central Venous Catheter Insertion Kits

Abstract

Inclusive of labor, the reusable central venous catheter insertion kits were less expensive than were the single-use kits. For our hospital, which uses brown coal-sourced electricity, the environmental costs of the reusable kit were considerably greater than those of the single-use kit. Efforts to reduce the environmental footprint of reusable items should be directed towards decreasing the water and energy consumed in cleaning and sterilization. The source of hospital electricity significantly alters the relative environmental effects of reusable items.

Greening healthcare: systematic implementation of environmental programmes in a university teaching hospital

“…Engaging frontline health workers empowers them as they have much to contribute to improving environmental sustainability (Chenven and Copeland, 2013). McGain et al (2012) described a life cycle assessment of reusable and single use catheter insertion kit, concluding that method of energy generation significantly altered the environmental impact of these items. When researchers make such discoveries, opportunities arising need to be communicated to management to respond accordingly.…”

Endobronchial Ultrasonography Versus Mediastinoscopy: A Single-Institution Cost Analysis and Waste Comparison

“…A variety of original articles in the surgery, medicine, and anesthesiology literature have focused on different aspects of the environmental impact of health care, such as waste generation [9][10][11], reusable versus disposable items [12][13][14], and life-cycle analyses [12,13]. Interestingly, reports also indicate that environmentally conscious practices are cost-effective [8,[15][16][17].…”

A national survey on attitudes and barriers on recycling and environmental sustainability efforts among Canadian anesthesiologists: an opportunity for knowledge translation

“…Life-cycle assessments have been applied to compare the environmental footprint of anesthetic pharmaceuticals, 27 processes, 28 and products. [29][30][31][32] Some examples of commonly used products, which may be found in both reusable and single-use alternatives within the same OR, include SGAs and sterile gowns. For both of these, tabulating resource utilization and financial costs over a product's life-cycle indicated the reusable option would be both environmentally and economically sustainable.…”