Green operating room project in a multidisciplinary Surgical Unit
Giulia Osella, Nicola Leone, Mariachiara Benedetto, Eugenia Lavorini, Luca Petruzzelli, Alberto Arezzo, Mario Morino

TL;DR
This study shows that better waste sorting in operating rooms can reduce biohazardous waste, especially in certain surgical specialties.
Contribution
The study demonstrates a practical approach to reducing biohazardous waste in a multidisciplinary surgical unit through improved waste segregation.
Findings
A 20 kg reduction in biohazardous waste was achieved over 3 weeks with the same number of surgical procedures.
Orthopedic procedures generated the most hazardous waste at 9.35 kg per intervention.
General Surgery, Urology, Otolaryngology, and Orthopedics were the highest contributors to biohazardous waste.
Abstract
The climate emergency requires effective measures to reduce the environmental impact of the healthcare system. Approximately 20% of medical waste originates from operating rooms. Proper waste segregation, along with adherence to a correct definition of biohazardous waste, are good practice procedures in the operating unit that ensure waste reduction. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of waste segregation in a multispecialty Surgical Unit. During a 3-week observational period, compared with a subsequent 3-week experimental period, counts of paper and plastic bags and the number and weight of biohazardous waste were recorded. The experimental period incorporated heightened waste sorting attention and introduced new criteria for surgical uniform disposal. While no significant differences in paper and plastic bag production were observed between the two periods, there was a…
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Taxonomy
TopicsClimate Change and Health Impacts · Healthcare and Environmental Waste Management · Healthcare cost, quality, practices
