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Even a brief keep in hospital produces a considerable amount of waste. Simply image all of the disposable objects designed for use as soon as and thrown away: face masks, gloves, packaging, intravenous tubing, and even tools comparable to chrome steel scissors.
This sort of single-use medical tools was first launched in high-income international locations within the Sixties, due to advances in plastic manufacturing and a rising emphasis on an infection prevention and management.
About 85% of the waste single-use merchandise created is nonhazardous and will be recycled or disposed of with out particular processing. However a whole lot of the time it is not sorted accurately. This implies it’s usually combined with hazardous waste that needs to be incinerated earlier than it’s despatched to landfill, which will increase greenhouse fuel emissions.
Our new examine examined changing only one form of merchandise—single-use absorbent pads, often called “blueys”—with a reusable model within the intensive care unit (ICU).
Blueys are pads fabricated from layered tissue paper, with a plastic waterproof backing. They’re positioned underneath sufferers to guard bedding and take up bodily fluids comparable to blood and urine throughout affected person care and different procedures.
We wished to know the way a lot waste might be diverted from landfill by changing these single-use merchandise with reusable linen—and importantly, whether or not it was secure and hygienic for sufferers. Here is what we discovered.
What our examine checked out
Over two years, we examined knowledge from 2,114 ICU sufferers at a Melbourne hospital—46% of them (970 sufferers) earlier than we launched reusable linen, and 54% (1,114 sufferers) after.
For the primary yr (the “before” part), single-use blueys had been used. Within the second yr (the “after” part), these had been changed with reusable pads, made out of tender cotton with a breathable backing. These had an analogous capability to soak up liquids because the disposable model however—as a substitute of being thrown away—they had been washed and reused.
The examine in contrast what number of kilograms of waste had been generated by single-use blueys within the first yr, in comparison with the reusable linen.
We additionally explored whether or not reusable linen elevated sufferers’ danger of strain accidents, typically often called mattress sores. These are wounds that develop when sufferers are motionless and spend a whole lot of time sitting or mendacity in a single place, inflicting the pores and skin to interrupt down.
Sufferers within the ICU have a excessive danger of creating strain accidents. These can delay restoration and extend their keep in hospital.
To guage the change, we surveyed nurses who’d used the reusable pads. We additionally reviewed medical data to match the prevalence of strain accidents within the two teams, together with affected person demographics comparable to age, intercourse and size of hospital keep.
What we discovered
There was no distinction in strain accidents between the 2 teams. This implies reusable linen didn’t improve the chance of an ICU affected person creating a strain harm.
Nevertheless it did save a whole lot of waste. Within the yr earlier than introducing reusable pads, 21,554 disposable pads had been used on this one hospital ward, producing virtually half a metric ton of waste from this single-use merchandise alone.
Shifting to reusable linen successfully eradicated this waste, saving about half a metric ton (496 kilograms) from going to landfill in a single yr alone.
Initially, some nurses expressed issues about whether or not the reusable linen pads would have an effect on sufferers’ pores and skin. Nonetheless, as soon as the reusable pads had been launched and used for a number of weeks, workers had been extremely glad. Many famous they had been extra sustainable and helped cut back waste, and really helpful persevering with to make use of them.
Whereas our examine did not have a look at an infection danger particularly, 50 years of information from the USA and the UK have beforehand proven reusable linen doesn’t improve the chance of infections when it’s washed and sterilized correctly.
For instance, Australian laundry requirements for an infection management require reusable objects to be washed at a sure temperature (above 65°C for a minimum of ten minutes, or 71°C for a minimum of three minutes) or handled with a chemical disinfectant when materials is warmth delicate.
Why this analysis issues
Australia’s health-care system produces as much as 7% of the nation’s complete greenhouse fuel emissions. Hospitals are the one greatest contributor.
Given that is largely from direct affected person care, making day-to-day routines extra sustainable can have a big effect.
There are different advantages, too. Throughout the early components of the COVID pandemic, when there have been usually tools shortages in provide chains, our analysis confirmed that utilizing reusable private protecting tools (PPE) was secure and will assist guarantee merchandise remained accessible. It was additionally extra sustainable and more cost effective.
One potential disadvantage of reusable health-care tools is how a lot water is consumed cleansing and sterilizing it. Our examine did not assess this straight.
However in additional analysis, we plan to do a life cycle evaluation that compares single-use blueys and reusable linen.
This can be a well known approach to assess the environmental affect of merchandise from “cradle to grave.” The evaluation considers the power consumption, water use, greenhouse fuel emissions and value concerned not solely within the merchandise’ manufacture, but additionally of their use and disposal. This consists of the affect of washing and sterilizing merchandise versus sending objects to landfill.
Well being-care staff usually face boundaries to sustainable follow when caring for sufferers. However as frontline staff are managing the well being penalties of local weather change and environmental disasters, it is vital they perceive their function in selling environmentally accountable care. Entry to tools that’s secure, for each their sufferers and the planet, is important.
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Reusing medical tools is nice for the planet. However is it secure? (2025, October 7)
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