Health care is a significant contributor to landfill due to the amount of waste generated from medical consumables. At Holmesglen Institute, a dual sector TAFE that provides both higher education and vocational training, the Bachelor and Diploma of Nursing programs are delivered, with approximately a thousand students attending yearly. One of the most essential components of both qualifications is the completion of practical skills within nursing laboratories to mimic a patient-facing setting, using medical supplies. Yet despite the critical nature of healthcare, the healthcare system relies heavily on single-use items that greatly impact planetary health.
The Nursing Department of Holmesglen have implemented reuse, repurpose and recycle program that aims to both reduce waste and increase education about sustainability practices. Led by the Laboratory Manager, this program involves staff and students to separate nursing supplies used within laboratories, which can then be processed into reuse, repurposing and recycling appropriately.
Examples of ways in which healthcare consumables can be recycled include: cleaning and repackaging of IV lines and syringes, recycling surgical gloves using Terracycle. Within a single year, approx. 180kg of surgical gloves have been diverted from landfill waste.
In addition to the environmental impact, the financial impact of this program has been considerable. With a saving of $25 per IV line reused, this program yields an approximate saving of $25,000 per month,
Suggested methods to apply to clinical settings include:
-Raising awareness of the use of single use plastic in Healthcare
-Making mindful choices when using equipment
-Recycling consumables correctly where possible
These were beyond our capability to implement and their practicality remains to be tested.
The further application of these principles of reduce, reuse and recycle into the clinical setting, and to other education settings, will continue to reduce the environmental impact of healthcare courses and improve planetary health.