Reducing Medical Waste

Abstract

Medical waste is a necessary by-product of any hospital environment; however, the majority of regulated medical waste is produced in the OR from the use of disposable surgical supplies (eg, drapes, gowns, basins, gloves, sponges). We conducted a concept comparison project in the ORs of two large medical centers in Bethesda, Maryland, and Washington, DC, to evaluate the effects of using reusable surgical basins, gowns, and table and Mayo stand covers in place of disposable products. Survey results indicated that surgeons and surgical technologists found the reusable products to be preferable to the disposable products currently in use. In addition, using reusable products provided a means to decrease regulated medical waste generated in the OR by an average of 65% as well as reduce the cost of waste disposal. AORN recommends evaluating the environmental effects of using reusable, reposable, and disposable products; our findings provide evidence that may be useful to surgical facilities that seek to adopt a "green" approach.

Surgical waste audit of 5 total knee arthroplasties

“…[20][21][22][23][24][25] However, many of these studies are outdated, and a 2010 life cycle analysis reported that reusable surgical linens showed a clear environmental and financial advantage over disposable linens. 26 Although further research on this topic is needed, hospitals, including ours, should consider transitioning to reusable surgical linens to reduce the volume of surgical waste produced.…”

Development and Initial Porcine and Cadaver Experience with Three-Dimensional Printing of Endoscopic and Laparoscopic Equipment

“…Biohazardous waste disposal from ORs accounts for nearly 20% of a hospital's environmental services budget. 6,7 Disposable medical devices also represent a significant OR expense. In 2009, Park and colleagues estimated that supply costs represent 58% of the total budget of an OR and this figure has been increasing.…”

Environmental responsibility in hospital care: Findings from a qualitative study

“…Environmental managers have been reported to contribute to organizations' legal [27] and profitable operations and represent the organization's sustainable aims to their staff. [25] An increasing number of studies are looking at environmental responsibility in hospital care by observing different areas, especially waste management [19,28,29] and sustainable activities in the operating theater. [20,23,30] In contrast, very few studies have looked at comprehensive environmental responsibility in hospital organizations [9] and have merely referred to structural skeletons that promote ecologically sustainable patient care.…”