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- Bref: Une startup tasmanienne s’efforce de réduire les tonnes de déchets de plastiques à usage unique dans les hôpitaux en créant un programme de recyclage en boucle fermée
- Et après? Le personnel de santé affirme que l’ampleur du problème est énorme, mais GreenMed connaît du succès et déploiera un autre essai cette année, cette fois dans le nord de la Tasmanie
Après des années de travail en tant qu’infirmier autorisé, Brenton Lovering a été confronté à une vérité inévitable du travail : le secteur de la santé a un problème avec les déchets plastiques.
De l’emballage de stérilisation à l’emballage des ustensiles et aux blouses médicales, la plupart des articles en plastique utilisés dans un cadre médical sont envoyés à la décharge ou incinérés pour éviter la contamination.
“En tant qu’infirmière, j’ai toujours accepté le gaspillage dans le cadre des soins cliniques, et nombre de mes collègues seraient en résonance avec ce message”, a déclaré M. Lovering.
“Il a été accepté que vous emballiez simplement les déchets et qu’ils s’en aillent – et tout cela au nom de soins cliniques exceptionnels.”
Lorsqu’il a approché un ami de longue date Mat Usher pour l’aider à trouver une solution, ils ont été confrontés à la manière de gérer l’ampleur des déchets au sein du secteur.
“J’avais passé très peu de temps dans les hôpitaux avant cela”, a déclaré M. Usher.
“Le gaspillage que j’ai vu directement sortir du bloc opératoire, où nous passons la majorité de notre temps, était pour moi vraiment choquant.”
Rejoignez le blog en direct de War On Waste Q&A sur Mardi, 25 juillet depuis 11h sur le site ABC News.
Craig et un groupe d’experts seront sur le pont pour répondre à toutes vos questions sur les déchets et dissiper les mythes sur le recyclage.
Le duo déploie actuellement un premier programme pilote australien, par le biais de leur entreprise GreenMed, dans les hôpitaux Calvary’s Lenah Valley et St John’s à Hobart pour créer une “boucle fermée” de recyclage du plastique médical.
Depuis leur lancement en mai, ils ont évité à plus de 1 000 kilogrammes de plastique de se retrouver à la décharge.
L’essai consiste à collecter des emballages de stérilisation en polypropylène dans les blocs opératoires de l’hôpital et à les reconditionner localement en d’autres articles utilisables.
“Une fois qu’une feuille a fait son travail et qu’elle a maintenu la stérilité du contenu, elle est jetée à la décharge”, a déclaré M. Lovering.
“Nous avons donc identifié cela comme un matériau plastique commun, à volume élevé et de haute qualité qui était intrinsèquement recyclable.”
Le programme pilote démarre modestement, refabriquant l’emballage jeté en coins en plastique utilisés pour soutenir les plateaux en chirurgie.
Mais GreenMed a déclaré que le succès du programme lui avait donné l’espoir que la portée des produits fabriqués pourrait être élargie et déployée entre les États.
Le secteur soutient davantage d’initiatives vertes
Le directeur de mission de Calvary Hobart, Tony Brennan, a déclaré que le personnel avait plaidé pour des programmes plus durables au sein de l’hôpital pendant des années, mais que la pandémie avait entravé les efforts pour les adopter.
“Il y a tellement de déchets qui vont à la décharge qui sortent de cet hôpital, et dans tout l’hôpital, les infirmières et les assistants hospitaliers, tout le monde voulait faire une différence”, a déclaré M. Brennan.
“Je pense que la communauté australienne, et certainement les travailleurs de la santé, sont frustrés qu’il soit très difficile de faire quelque chose contre les plastiques à usage unique.”
M. Brennan a déclaré que Calvary prévoyait d’adopter le même programme pilote dans son hôpital de Launceston plus tard cette année.
M. Usher a déclaré qu’il espérait que des programmes comme celui-ci inciteraient d’autres hôpitaux à adopter des mesures similaires.
“À ce jour, les hôpitaux n’ont pas eu la possibilité d’utiliser leur plastique pour d’autres plastiques qu’ils utilisent tous les jours, nous sommes donc vraiment fiers de pouvoir leur apporter quelque chose où ils peuvent utiliser les déchets à des fins plus importantes.
“Quand les hôpitaux ressentent et voient exactement les effets de leurs actions, je pense que cela va créer une lame de fond”, a-t-il déclaré.
Chargement
Une surveillance fédérale est nécessaire pour un “problème épineux”
Le recyclage du plastique médical est compliqué par l’exigence que les déchets soient non contaminés et stériles.
“Je pense que l’une des choses est que tant de gens pensent que les déchets cliniques sont sales et qu’ils ne peuvent donc pas être recyclés. Et dans une certaine mesure, pour le moment, c’est relativement exact”, a déclaré M. Lovering.
Il a déclaré que d’autres programmes en Australie pour décontaminer les déchets médicaux comprenaient des essais préliminaires utilisant des UV et une chaleur extrême pour traiter le plastique.
Alors, combien de déchets médicaux en plastique à usage unique le secteur de la santé produit-il en Australie ?
Mesurer l’ampleur du problème est malheureusement difficile car il n’existe pas d’organisme national comptabilisant les déchets du secteur.
La tâche de mesurer les déchets plastiques incombe aux États et aux territoires, et cela ne tient pas compte du système privé.
Forbes McGain de Western Health a déclaré que sans surveillance fédérale, les solutions devaient commencer au sein du secteur de la santé.
Le défenseur de longue date de la réduction des déchets plastiques dans le secteur a déclaré que l’approvisionnement en équipements réutilisables était une solution simple que les hôpitaux pouvaient adopter.
Le Dr McGain a déclaré que Western Health, basé à Victoria, avait réduit le nombre de blouses médicales utilisées de 900 000 entre le 1er janvier et le 30 juin 2022 à 160 000 au cours de la même période l’année suivante, en passant à des blouses réutilisables.
“Mais c’est un élément d’un hôpital en Australie – l’ampleur du problème est énorme”, a déclaré le Dr McGain.
“Le simple fait que vous fournissiez quelque chose que vous venez de jeter après une seule utilisation, qui a un cycle de vie ou une empreinte environnementale très… médiocre, est vraiment une mise en accusation contre les soins de santé.
“Cela nécessite des encouragements de la part des gouvernements, mais cela nécessite en grande partie des nuances et un travail sur la prévention des infections – tous ces facteurs importants – car la dernière chose que vous voulez faire est d’augmenter les taux d’infection dans les soins de santé.
“Donc, je pense que c’est quelque chose qui nécessite plusieurs niveaux et c’est un peu un problème épineux, mais nous pouvons y arriver, cela peut être fait.”
Chargement…
#nouvel #essai #recyclage #cible #une #quantité #choquante #plastiques #usage #unique #utilisés #par #les #hôpitaux
2023-07-19 03:43:11
To better understand current practices related to the use and disposal of healthcare plastics, the Healthcare Plastics Recycling Council conducted interviews with several hospitals across Europe. The information gathered through these interviews uncovers distinct barriers to plastic recycling in healthcare settings and identifies important opportunities for improvement, not just at the hospital level but across the supply chain.
Process
To gather detailed and consistent information during the hospital interviews, a questionnaire was developed to track specific medical devices and plastic packaging as they moved through the hospital. This included delivery and arrival to the hospital, movement through preparation and procedural areas, and disposal and exit from the hospital.
Speaking with Environmental and Sustainability Managers, and those whose accountabilities include waste management and recycling programs, HPRC interviewed hospitals from the following countries: United Kingdom, Spain, The Netherlands, France, Finland, Luxembourg.
Findings
Over the course of the interviews, several recurring themes surfaced related to plastic recycling barriers that could be mapped into three categories: hospital barriers, legislative barriers and waste processor barriers.
Hospital Barriers
Multi-Materials
Healthcare products and packaging that consist of multiple material types can be a barrier to recycling. For example, a product may be formed by combining bioplastics and petroleum-based plastics, packaging may consist of a plastic material with a paper layer glued on top. Both of these make it impossible for hospital staff to separate the materials and difficult for waste processors to recycle.
Related Resource: Best Practices for Recyclable Products and Packaging
Identification of Plastic Type
Given the variety of different plastic materials used in healthcare products and packaging, it is difficult for hospital staff to correctly identify plastic materials and which waste stream they go in. There is a general lack of knowledge around which plastics are recyclable and which are not – resulting in inconsistent collection of materials.
Related Resource: Common Recyclable Healthcare Plastics, Hospital Recycling Training Tools
Lack of Space
Good material separation and collection efforts often require adequate space for collection and waste bins. There is also an issue of storage space once materials are collected and awaiting pick up from a waste processor. Most hospitals were not designed to include these space needs and as a consequence, can severely limit a hospital’s ability to recycle.
Related Resource: Space Guidance for Hospitals
Legislation Barriers
Compliance Complexity
In Europe, there is a lack of understanding across EU countries as how to treat healthcare plastics by local waste-stream specific directives. This complexity then leads to lack of clarity around regulatory compliance.
Contaminated Products
Due to environmental policy and licensing, contaminated waste materials must be separated out from other waste streams. Contaminated waste materials are the biggest contributor to a hospitals total waste stream – and currently there is a lack of guidance on whether contaminated healthcare materials can be safely cleaned and recycled.
Waste Processor Barriers
Lack of Waste Acceptance
It is oftentimes difficult for hospitals to find a waste processor who will accept their plastic waste stream. The relatively small amount of plastic waste from a hospital, when compared to other industries, can seem insignificant to a waste processor. Additionally, the potential for contaminated materials can be seen as a safety risk by waste processors.
Related Resource: Finding a Recycling Partner for Your Hospital, Questions to Ask Your Recycler
Opportunities for Improvement
Based on the identified barriers, hospital interviews also included discussions on what actions could be taken to make improvements in these areas. Following is a summary of potential solutions that would help reduce current recycling challenges.
Supplier Improvements
There is a clear desire by hospitals for more guidance on material types and labelling of plastic packaging materials. Hospitals are often fast-paced and stressful environments, and hospital staff don’t have time to waste trying to identify plastic types and determine which collection bins to place them in. A simple label, mark or resin code could go a long way in improving material separation at the source.
Another significant opportunity for improvement is the increased use of mono-materials in product and packaging design. The elimination of multiple material types within one discrete product or package not only removes the labor and associated costs of manual separation, but it also creates a cleaner, higher value waste stream.
Hospital Improvements
Investments in education and training for staff can be vital for successful healthcare plastic recycling programs. It is important that hospital staff understand how to identify different material types and which collection bins they should be placed in. Short but frequent meetings, communications and signage can help improve material sorting and yields.
Hospital staff should also consider working with procurement to develop a purchasing policy that prioritizes sustainable products and packaging — and ultimately their ability to be recycled. This includes not only evaluating the costs of materials, but also the costs associated with disposal.
Lastly, hospitals should engage waste processors in discussions to help improve recycling rates. Find out what capabilities waste processors might have to conduct mechanical sorting of materials at their processing facility. Hospitals could save space and effort by transferring material sorting to the waste processor.
Legislation Improvements
Regulatory bodies should work together with hospitals and medical device suppliers to research and evaluate the actual differences between hospital waste and waste from other industries. Currently, there are many hospital waste items that are automatically designated as non-recyclable, even though these items are in fact able to be recycled.
Waste Processor Improvements
Waste processors should continue to invest in improved sorting techniques and work together with hospitals and medical device suppliers to ensure these techniques are effective for healthcare plastic waste. Doing this will help create homogeneity of waste streams and higher market value.
Br J Anaesth. 2023 Apr 13:S0007-0912(23)00173-3. doi: 10.1016/j.bja.2023.03.029. Online ahead of print.
NO ABSTRACT
PMID:37149477 | DOI:10.1016/j.bja.2023.03.029
Landrigan PJ, Raps H, Cropper M, Bald C, Brunner M, Canonizado EM, Charles D, Chiles TC, Donohue MJ, Enck J, Fenichel P, Fleming LE, Ferrier-Pages C, Fordham R, Gozt A, Griffin C, Hahn ME, Haryanto B, Hixson R, Ianelli H, James BD, Kumar P, Laborde A, Law KL, Martin K, Mu J, Mulders Y, Mustapha A, Niu J, Pahl S, Park Y, Pedrotti ML, Pitt JA, Ruchirawat M, Seewoo BJ, Spring M, Stegeman JJ, Suk W, Symeonides C, Takada H, Thompson RC, Vicini A, Wang Z, Whitman E, Wirth D, Wolff M, Yousuf AK, Dunlop S. Landrigan PJ, et al. Ann Glob Health. 2023 Mar 21;89(1):23. doi: 10.5334/aogh.4056. eCollection 2023. Ann Glob Health. 2023. PMID: 36969097 Free PMC article. Review.
Figure 1
Carbon footprint of one gown…
Figure 1
Carbon footprint of one gown unit.
CMAJ. 2023 Apr 11;195(14):E518-E519. doi: 10.1503/cmaj.1096046.
NO ABSTRACT
PMID:37041000 | DOI:10.1503/cmaj.1096046
J Nurs Care Qual. 2023 Mar 30. doi: 10.1097/NCQ.0000000000000697. Online ahead of print.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Objectives of quality principles in the clinical setting present nursing with opportunities for quality patient care but at lower environmental footprint. This affects patients, hospital personnel, and community because choices reduce climate change and thus support an innovative nursing role.
PURPOSE: This article aims to support nursing knowledge to include environment in decisions regarding patient care and reusable versus disposable incontinence underpads (IUPs).
METHODS: A life cycle analysis was conducted, including soiling, reusable cycles before removal, supply chains, laundry use, and end-of-life environmental impact.
RESULTS: The selection of reusable IUPs versus disposables reduced total natural resource energy consumption by 71%, greenhouse gas emissions by 61%, blue water consumption by 57%, and solid waste by 97%.
CONCLUSIONS: The nursing community can use this information in its health care organizations regarding IUP to advocate for decisions to select reusable IUPs that benefit our environment (air, water, and land).
PMID:37000935 | DOI:10.1097/NCQ.0000000000000697
Knowing what we throw away can help us discover how to reduce our waste. Another successful #plasticwaste audit was conducted at @Landspitali as part of our project - Towards #PlasticFreeHealthcare in Europe. #ClimateAction Find out more: bit.ly/3gVYLyT
Risk Manag Healthc Policy. 2023 Feb 21;16:267-270. doi: 10.2147/RMHP.S396667. eCollection 2023.
ABSTRACT
In the light of the COP27 Climate Change Conference, the concept of the circular economy has come to the fore with promotion of reuse and recycling of appliances and materials from electronics to clothes. This concept has not been widely taken up by healthcare systems. In this perspective article, we discuss the idea of the circular economy and how, by extension, the concept of "circular medicine" with optimised hospital and medical clinic waste recycling might be promoted in the context of better stewardship of resources in healthcare management.
PMID:36852329 | PMC:PMC9961144 | DOI:10.2147/RMHP.S396667
Did you know that over five million gloves were distributed to the NHS and social care settings in the three months from October to December 2022?
When used correctly, gloves are a vital piece of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). However, there are times when hand washing can be just as effective in protecting staff and their patients – and avoid unnecessary plastic waste going to landfill.
Saving the planet, one glove at a time
This is why the team behind the clinical workstream of our Patient First, Planet First Green Plan are initiating conversations about how we can safely reduce unnecessary glove use and take a step towards making healthcare more sustainable.
These discussions started last month with several virtual ‘Gloves Off’ sessions, where staff reflected on their own glove use, and shared ideas for how we can nurture a gloves off approach looking ahead.
The one-hour workshops attracted staff from medicine, surgery, outpatients, pathology, catering, IPC and risk management, and the outputs have been written up for development by the team
This included the need for easy materials that highlight when gloves should be worn, and when they shouldn’t. In response, we have produced a handy infographic for teams to follow during Environment Week and beyond.
During UHSussex Environment Week, staff are invited to attend a special ‘Gloves Off’ event on MS Teams on Thursday 23 February from 1pm-2pm.
It’s their chance to hear more about this important programme of work, with expert insights from UHSussex Green Clinical leads, and guest speakers from University of West London Great Ormond Street Hospital.
There will also be a chance to put questions to the panel at the end. For UHSussex staff who would like to attend, please email the Communications Team: [email protected].
The event will be recorded for staff who are unable to attend.
Roll out of reusable instruments
The clinical workstream are no strangers to implementing initiatives that aim to reduce clinical waste and support our Trust goal to reach Net Zero Carbon (direct emissions) by 2040.
Read on our website about how the Royal Sussex County Hospital has become one of the first Accident & Emergency (A&E) departments in the country to trial using reusable suture instruments to improve the service’s environmental impact.
The Environment Officer team trialed a new nappy/incontinence waste #recycling scheme, & improving awareness of greener disposal options. The #GreenTeam project has estimated annual savings of 82,821.96 kgCO2e, & an additional cost of £22,000.
#WSA2023
Osborne SR, Alston LV, Bolton KA, Whelan J, Reeve E, Wong Shee A, Browne J, Walker T, Versace VL, Allender S, Nichols M, Backholer K, Goodwin N, Lewis S, Dalton H, Prael G, Curtin M, Brooks R, Verdon S, Crockett J, Hodgins G, Walsh S, Lyle DM, Thompson SC, Browne LJ, Knight S, Pit SW, Jones M, Gillam MH, Leach MJ, Gonzalez-Chica DA, Muyambi K, Eshetie T, Tran K, May E, Lieschke G, Parker V, Smith A, Hayes C, Dunlop AJ, Rajappa H, White R, Oakley P, Holliday S. Osborne SR, et al. Med J Aust. 2020 Dec;213 Suppl 11:S3-S32.e1. doi: 10.5694/mja2.50881. Med J Aust. 2020. PMID: 33314144
With funding from Environment and Climate Change Canada, the Canadian Coalition for Green Health Care worked on a project to demonstrate that hospital-generated PPE can successfully be managed by applying principles of the circular economy, and through cycles of reuse in particular.
The Coalition hopes this video will break down misconceptions regarding reusable PPE, incite discussion on sustainability and waste reduction in health care, and inspire health care workers to advocate for reusable PPE systems in their facilities.
Learn more about our project: https://greenhealthcare.ca/ppe-msup/
Important information for patients, families and visitors to read before coming to our sites.
London Ontario – St. Joseph’s Health Care London (St. Joseph’s) is the first hospital in Ontario to switch to a medical mask that protects more than staff, physicians, patients and visitors. It’s also safe for the planet.
The new green alternative mask is medical grade and certified while also biodegradable and compostable. Made from plant-based biopolymers from renewable crop resources, the mask not only meets the gold standard for protection, it boasts an impressive carbon offset – producing 65 percent less CO2e emissions over its life cycle than a synthetic mask.
“As a long-time leader in environmental stewardship, St. Joseph’s is always seeking solutions and making changes to reduce our impact on the environment,” says Lori Higgs, Vice President Clinical Support and Chief Financial Officer at St. Joseph’s. “We are pleased to lead the way in the province with a switch to a green mask that is a healthy solution for the environment and our care teams.”
The environmentally-friendly mask is the VIRALOC eco™ mask produced by PADM Medical based in Winnipeg, MB. The selling feature for St. Joseph’s was an opportunity to significantly reduce consumption of single-use plastics without compromising on breathability, filtration or splash resistance. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, face mask consumption and waste have become a global issue and a massive source of microplastic waste in the environment.
The new mask is also less expensive than St. Joseph’s current masks.
Across the organization, about 1.5 million masks are used per year at the current use rate. The VIRALOC eco™ mask is an ASTM F2100 Level 3 procedural mask and will eventually replace all masks provided to those working and training at St. Joseph’s as well as patients, visitors and volunteers.
The switch is happening gradually. Stocking of the mask began at St. Joseph’s the week of Dec. 12 and is expected to be fully implemented by mid-January 2023.
“We were pleased to find a mask that not only protects all those who work or receive care at St. Joseph’s, but also benefits the environment,” says Toby O’Hara, General Manager of Healthcare Materials Management Services, which consolidates purchasing for St. Joseph’s and the region’s hospitals.
The mask is currently used by major hospitals in Manitoba and Saskatchewan and multiple retirement homes across Canada. “We are very excited to be working with St. Joseph’s Health Care London as the first Ontario hospital to fully integrate VIRALOC eco™ as a sustainable alternative,” says Kyle Fiolka, Chief Innovation Officer with PADM Group. “Our commitment is to creating eco-conscious products to support the health and wellness of all individuals and our planet.”
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For more information or to arrange interviews, contact: Dahlia Reich, Communication Consultant St. Joseph’s Health Care London 519 646-6100 ext. 65294, Cell: 519 619-0971, pager 10117
About St. Joseph’s Health Care London
Renowned for compassionate care, St. Joseph’s Health Care London is a leading academic health care centre in Canada dedicated to helping people live to their fullest by minimizing the effects of injury, disease and disability through excellence in care, teaching and research. Through partnership with Lawson Health Research Institute and our collaborative engagement with other health care and academic partners, St. Joseph’s has become an international leader in the areas of: chronic disease management; medical imaging; specialized mental health care; rehabilitation and specialized geriatrics; and surgery. St. Joseph’s operates through a wide range of hospital, clinic and long-term and community-based settings, including: St. Joseph’s Hospital; Parkwood Institute; Mount Hope Centre for Long Term Care; and the Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care. For more information, visit www.sjhc.london.on.ca.
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