The Johns Hopkins team said hospital operating rooms notoriously open sterilized equipment that is never used, install energy-sucking overhead lights and fill red bags that are labeled as medical waste with harmless trash that could be more cheaply disposed. The research team assessed 43 studies on hospitals’ environmental practices.
In surgical suites, for example, two kinds of disposal bags are used to separate waste: red bags for infectious and pathologic waste and clear bags for noninfectious waste. One researcher said that as much as 90 percent of refuse that ends up in red bags does not meet the criteria for red-bag waste, which costs far more to process.
Green initiatives can help hospitals achieve cost-savings without compromising patient safety. The Johns Hopkins team says wider adoption of the practice of recycling medical equipment could save healthcare dollars and landfill space. Such equipment includes laparoscopic ports and durable cutting tools typically tossed out after a single use. Proper sterilization, recalibration and testing has shown that reprocessing equipment is safe.
Read the news release about hospital OR cost-savings.
Read other coverage about OR efficiency:
– 4 Best Practices for Minimizing Retained Surgical Items
– 3 Ways to Achieve Excellent Patient Throughput
– Intraoperative Monitoring Technician Can Help OR Efficiency, Improve Patient Outcomes
