We are in the midst of a climate emergency, and our oceans are filling with plastic. We all have a part to play in protecting the environment, but unfortunately healthcare as an industry has a lot of catching up to do. I reflected on this, and started to look in greater detail at the impact that I as a healthcare professional have, and how I can make changes.
SINGLE USE PLASTIC
Plastic is everywhere in a hospital. Dressings, syringes, gloves, masks, packaging, the list goes on. Some single-use plastic is unavoidable, particularly where it protects us from infection, but some of the plastic use is avoidable. I have stopped using single-use coffee cups and food containers, and encourage you to do the same. I have stopped using plastic sticky tape in favour of paper gummed tape in packaging.
Where possible I have switched products to reusable or non-plastic containing products, and aim to recycle where possible (packaging). I have switched custom orthotic manufacturing processes reducing waste in manufacturing significantly.
WASTE
In addition to a commitment to reducing single use plastics, I am also aiming to go paperless where possible, using electronic records and banking. I am working to find suppliers that use renewable energy to power their servers. I prefer to issue invoices and reports electronically to save paper further. Where paper is used, this is disposed of securely and recycled.
Useful links:
https://sustainablehealthcare.org.uk
https://www.bmj.com/content/366/bmj.l5302
https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/blog/2019/04/nhs-climate-change
https://beachclean.net
Matthew Collison 