SUSTAINABILITY ARTICLES

Pee-in-Pot (PiP) is a sustainable innovation developed by Somerset NHS Foundation Trust to facilitate midstream urine collection. In this article, the team behind the innovation share their insights.

Sustainability was high on the agenda at EBME Expo. Dr. Helen Meese PhD CEng MIMechE MIPEM MWES FRSA told the delegates that biomedical engineers and technologists are “in a very powerful position to reimagine what the healthcare system is going to look like, particularly around environmental responsibility and technology advancement.”

As sustainability becomes central to the healthcare agenda, systems around the world are under pressure to deliver more care with fewer resources and clinicians. Clinical Services Journal spoke with Eric De Kesel, Chief Operating Officer & Executive Vice President, Sustainability, and Dr. Emma Wright, Chief Medical Officer, at Mölnlycke Health Care, about how the company is working to support healthcare systems turn sustainable healthcare from aspiration into daily practice, connecting performance, people and planet.

Sophie Spencer and Beth Greenhough discuss how transitioning to reusable surgical instruments, through a managed equipment service, can dramatically reduce theatres’ environmental impact. They consider how hospitals can embrace ‘Design for Life’ principles and circular economy thinking.

Shareeta Senthithasan considers: can Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) protect both workers and the environment? She shares some expert insights and discusses some of the key considerations.

Elliot Dixon highlights the NHS’s ‘untapped goldmine’ for achieving Net Zero and improving quality of care.

NHS England has published its first report on progress on achieving a greener NHS. This article provides a summary of the key findings

Ultrasound generates significant environmental impacts, when consumables and equipment life cycles are taken into consideration. Chris Taylor, UK & Ireland Sustainability Lead, at Philips Healthcare, provides an insight into the actions that ultrasound teams can take to help drive improvement.

Getinge is driving sustainability in operating theatres and is calling on NHS hospitals to prioritise anaesthetic gas reduction and recycling, through innovative approaches.

Human health is inextricably linked to the health of our planet, and action is well underway in Scotland to deliver improvements in sustainability. Innovation Manager at InnoScot Health, Frances Ramsay analyses the environmental outlook for Scottish healthcare.

Fruzsina Julianna David discusses how an innovative endoscope cleaning system could help to reduce clinical waste in healthcare, while also tackling the risk of biofilms.

Head of Innovation at InnoScot Health, Robert Rea discusses how NHS Scotland must aim to meet its 2040 target through cutting-edge innovation. He outlines the challenges and opportunities going forward.

How can the medical devices sector move beyond ‘green washing’ and improve its sustainability credentials? Graeme Cameron, Dan Wilson and Rich Shaw answer some burning questions on the role of industry and NHS procurement in helping achieve Net Zero.

At a Westminster Health Forum policy conference, earlier this year, Dr. Hayley Pinto, Education and Training lead at The Centre for Sustainable Healthcare, discussed some of the biggest challenges facing the NHS, in meeting Net Zero targets. She warned that ‘we could consider our collective failure to tackle climate change as a safeguarding issue for an entire generation’.

The NHS plans to stop purchasing from suppliers who do not meet or exceed its commitment to Net Zero and yet the HealthTech industry continues to face barriers and challenges to bringing sustainable medical devices to market. So, what can the NHS do to encourage innovation in sustainable HealthTech and ultimately reduce its carbon footprint?

An important study, involving the South Tees Hospitals NHS Trust, in the UK, and two other hospitals in Europe, has shed new light on how operating theatres can increase staff safety, improve theatre efficiency and reduce clinical waste.

Anaesthetists are making progress in reducing their impact on the environment. Dr. Paul Southall, an Elected Council Member of the Royal College of Anaesthetists and Environmental Advisor to the College, provides an insight into how the specialty is striving to ensure the NHS meets its Net Zero ambitions.

Kate Woodhead RGN DMS says we have a moral duty to reduce our carbon footprint. The Green Surgery Report by the Royal Colleges has set out the pathway for healthcare, but there are many ways in which we can ensure a circular economy. In this article, she discusses some of the ways this can be achieved.

A new strategy is being published to radically cut the number of single-use medical devices in the health service. The Design for Life programme aims to reduce waste and achieve an NHS-wide move to sustainable alternatives.

As the NHS faces considerable financial issues, Alison Arnold, provides an insight into where valuable money could be saved at hospital sites across the UK, by rethinking procurement strategies.