April is the month of the Earth, a reminder for organizations to consider their footprint on the planet and their trip to better environmental and community results. Hospitals and health systems can face important environmental and safety challenges by handling waste created through the course of patient care, diagnosis and treatment. The waste is widespread: from the design of the product, the manufacture and the distribution to the use of materials, the workflow of the employees and the arrangement. Based on regulatory activity at the national level, there is the opportunity to improve waste programs and policies within the health industry while reducing costs and improving compliance and environmental results, everything that marijuana impenivon sending environments.
A specific waste flow to consider is medical waste, which include biohazarts, acute, pathological and pharmaceutical waste. Taking into account the risk of emerging infectious diseases and the 5.9 million tons of waste generated by hospitals in the United States every year, it is essential that organizations prioritize the evaluation of their medical waste programs and processes. Leaders should consider thesis strategies and advice to manage regulated medical waste, this month and beyond, to help contribute to a healthier and cleaner future for everyone.
Think twice before throwing pharmaceutical waste
Medical care is intended to provide preventive, palliative care and other types of care. But if they are not handled properly, waste and by -products of care, including pharmaceutical waste, can cause potential damage to human and environmental health. While the pharmaceutical products of hazardous waste of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Law (RCRA) have strict requirements to prevent risks to human and environmental health, non -hazardous waste is not so regulated evenly. As a result, in some states, medical care organizations can rinse them or discard them with solid waste. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recommends the incineration of all pharmaceutical waste to reduce the impact on our river paths and the environment, but the regulatory requirement of doing so varies according to the State. Faced with this mosaic, medical care leaders can consider the development of a comprehensive pharmaceutical waste removal program to better handle waste in a way that mitigates the negative environmental impact on water sources in their community.
A comprehensive pharmaceutical waste program will require the participation of multiple interested parties within its organization and external partners. A full service program through a third -party provider can support waste determination, provide reusable container options and help facilities with training, segregation of waste and compliance drivers. Usually, when an installation has a pharmaceutical waste program, including the collection of hazardous, not dangerous and controlled substances, also reduces the conjectures on which medical washing collect. A full -service pharmaceutical waste disposal program can help health facilities to advance in the management of more sustainable pharmaceutical waste, compliance with regulations and a safer result for all.
Opt for reusable containers when possible
Sharps containers are a necessary part of any medical waste program to guarantee the safest and most compliant management of Sharps waste. This is another area of opportunity to potentially reduce the impact and environmental cost. Although many hospitals have made the transition to reusable containers of Sharps, some hospitals and facilities are not yet depend on disposable containers of a single use.
Health professionals should see reusable acute containers as an easy and convenient way to help their organizations to be more sustainable, since they reduce dependence on a single use plastics and potentially decrease significantly less products. Each reusable container can be used several times (some of up to 600 times), which means less energy and less materials in the manufacture, use, transport and elimination, much less the additional load in the supply and transport chain. Reusable Sharps containers can help save organizations money and reduce environmental impact by reducing the purchase and elimination of single -use Sharps containers, as well as unnecessary cardboard medical waste boxes for packaging.
Nourish a circular economy in the workplace
Despite the advances in health technology and digital records, there is still a notable dependence on the document in the health industry, including physical copies of patient records, identity documents, insurance records and health -related documents. This contains container information. The Portability and Responsibility Law of Health Insurance (HIPAA) requires that organizations protect confidential medical information, adding additional management requirements for paper documentation. Medical care organizations can help protect both PHI and the planet through the use of a confidential documents destruction service that includes deposition documents in safe containers before crushing and recovery of said grated paper to recycle in new paper products. This process prioritizes safety and sustainability through its supply chain and promotes a circular economy, a profit for both the environment and for data protection. A circular economy aims to find a beneficial reuse of materials. Creating a circular economy and a reuse of materials can help slow climate change by reducing the extraction and processing of natural resources. Organizations must evaluate the opportunities for circularity in other areas of waste, such as reprocessed medical devices or the reuse of the blue wrapping. These programs can lead to significant savings of costs and resources for organizations, as well as to the potential reduction of emissions. The UN International Resources Panel identified that the extraction of natural resources can contribute to approximately half or all global greenhouse gases.
Join forces with a regulated waste management partner
So crucial to instill a culture of sustainable practices within the workplace is to find a waste management partner that is aligned with its strategic priorities and values. To promote successful results, medical care organizations need partners who are willing to collaborate and work towards solutions that support their objectives related to compliance and sustainability. A successful waste program will include the comparative evaluation of its current state and the definition of objectives that are aligned or linked directly to the operational and sustainability strategic plans of its organization. The key design design attributes include the participation of appropriate internal and external stakeholders, the understanding of all the requirements and identification of available capital and resources. It is essential to find a real partner to help support the compliance and sustainability trip of your organization so that you can concentrate on your employees, patients and communities.
Your part to play this land and beyond
Integral waste management is more than an imperative of the month of the earth. Regulated medical waste is complex and, ultimately, require commitment or multiple interested parties both internal and external to their organization. By adopting response practices, the health sector can play a fundamental role in helping to support a more sustainable future for future generations while helping to protect employees, patients and communities.
Photo: Chrisgorgio, Getty Images
Alex Chapman is the Director of Regulatory Affairs of Stericycle, now part of WM Healthcare Solutions. It has spent the last 17 years in the health space, with extensive experience working with organizations to develop and also improve compliance and sustainability programs through the evaluation of waste through the value chain. Alex has a particular interest in the intersectionality of sustainability and compliance and their alignment with people, communities and the environment to generate significant results.
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