U.S. health care facilities produce more than 5.9 million tons of waste every year, according to one estimate; another suggests hospitals account for about 8 percent of greenhouse gas emissions caused by human activity.
Fortunately, the healthcare industry in four countries is paying increasing attention to sustainable products and best practices, a new study commissioned by Johnson & Johnson shows. The non-blind research study conducted by SK&A surveyed "key decision-makers" within institutional delivery networks and hospitals in Brazil, Germany, Italy and the United States, where health care spending is expected to make up 18 percent of the GDP by 2020.
“Our research already shows that green attributes are a top driver in health care purchasing decisions, but now we have experts shedding more light on the business case for sustainable products and practices,” said Al Iannuzzi, senior director, worldwide environment, health and safety at Johnson & Johnson. “While the global health care sector has made advancements in addressing sustainability issues, there’s ample opportunity to create more sustainable health care practices around the world.”
Almost half the hospitals surveyed in Brazil and Germany reported switching suppliers for more sustainable options, compared with a quarter of hospitals in Italy and the United States. Suppliers like Johnson & Johnson and Zimmer are responding by, for example, including sustainability considerations earlier in the R&D and product development processes, or by choosing surgical solutions that involve reprocessing (a way of sterilizing and recycling used instruments).
Next page: Green products can save hospitals millions of dollars
Photo of 3d green medical sign on a white background provided by maxcreatnz
So, what is being done today
So, what is being done today to help reduce the environmental impact of hospitals on our landfills and incinerators? Are there ways to recycle unused and unexpired supplies, that due to regulations, cannot be used again? The answer to both of these questions is answered "yes" by MedShare.
Hospitals regularly dispose of hundreds of clean, unused, items, as well as surplus medical equipment such as beds, ultrasounds, and wheelchairs . MedShare, a non-profit organization, is one of the country's largest recyclers of Medical surplus. Operating two 50,000 sq ft. Distribution and Volunteer Centers (in Atlanta and San Francisco Bay Area) MedShare collects unused, unexpired surplus medical supplies and equipment from hospitals and medical manufacturers and distributors. These are items that would be destined for landfills or out-of-state incinerators, but instead, MedShare redistributes them to needy hospitals in developing countries as well as 30 community-based health clinics throughout California and Georgia. Qualified recipients log on to use MedShare’s award-winning web-based inventory management system. Our extensive database of 20,000 items allow the overseas recipient to order EXACTLY the supplies and equipment they need to deliver better care to their patients.
More than 75 US hospitals partner with us to help our environment. In cooperation with leading hospitals, such as Sutter Health, Dignity Health, Kaiser Permanente, Emory University Hospital and Piedmont Hospital, we were able to divert an amazing 550 tons of surplus from local landfills in the last 12 months. These hospitals recognize the local environmental benefit that their contributions have, as well as the impact that they will have on people’s lives around the globe.
We recently received Acterra’s 2012 Environmental Innovation award for our ground-breaking program to recycle surplus medical supplies and equipment. Last fall we also received the 2011 Reuse Award from California's statewide recycling association – the CRRA.
As one of the country’s top-ranked charities, MedShare has shipped over 820 forty-foot ocean containers of surplus medical supplies and equipment to hospitals in 95 developing nations.
Learn more at www.MedShare.org