At Toulouse University Hospital, waste is reduced even in operating theaters
Through Lucie Fraissé
Published on
Respect for the environment even in operating theaters. Since 2018, a team of caregivers from the Purpan University Hospital has been thinking about how to reduce waste in operating theaters. The first recommendations of the project ” Green Block » are now in place in all of the Toulouse University Hospital units.
30% of the volume of waste produced by the CHU
It’s the Doctor Charlotte Martin, an anesthesiologist in neurosurgery who led this initiative. “In operating theaters, we produce a lot of waste: in volume this corresponds to 30% of what the entire hospital produces. Beyond sorting, we were not vigilant about our waste production. “
A small group, bringing together doctors, orderlies and nurses operating theaters at Pierre-Paul Riquet hospital therefore set out to reflect on the methods to be implemented to improve waste management in operating theaters.
“In the OR, on two types of waste, explains Doctor Charlotte Martin. Those that we have encountered in conventional trash cans and waste from healthcare activities with infectious risks, the Dasri, which cannot go through the traditional processing circuit. “
Develop sorting
Or these Dasri cost twice as much to treat and have an ecological impact three times greater than conventional waste. New recommendations for sorting waste have therefore been put in place to reduce the volume of Dasri in the blocks. »At the CHU level, this allows reduce CO2 production by 15 tonnes per month“, Underlines Dr. Martin.
At the same time, the practice of sorting has developed. “Sorting already existed in the hospital, it had stopped at the doors of the operating theaters,” explains Dr. Charlotte Martin. It’s a sanitized area with strict hygiene rules: it seemed complicated to set up. “
However, the think tank identifies block waste that can be recycled and adopt strategies to make sorting simple. ” It had to be easy and that it does not take too long for the agents. The caregivers worked to reorganize the blocks, thought about where to position the bins, determined what types of bins to use, indicated when to empty them, etc. 5 tons of waste per month. “
Produce less waste
Sorting waste is good, not producing it is even better …
“We became aware of the fact that we overconsumed in the operating theaters. We prepared each time equipment” just in case “: gloves, sterile drapes, suture … We performed a test counting for four days what we had opened and not used: it corresponded to 30 kilos of material on Purpan alone! “
Caregivers are therefore also working to change the way they operate to produce less waste in the blocks. Including on the use of halogen gas, used for anesthesia and extremely polluting. “We are studying how to use it perfectly, to consume it more efficiently. “
Strong support for the project
Changing the way of working to limit pollution while guaranteeing optimal health safety conditions for patients, that is the challenge of this Green Block project. The best practices of which, which were first put in place at Purpan, are gradually being extended to all the Toulouse University Hospital sites … with a very good reception from caregivers.
“By discussing with colleagues from other hospitals who are working on these waste reduction issues, I realized that the support was not as strong as with us,” notes Dr Charlotte Martin. In Toulouse, it works because it is the healthcare teams who set up the project. “
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