Photo By David Greeson | 240529-D-YW926-1008: Ruby Contreras, the logistics accountable officer at William...... read more read more
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FORT BLISS, Texas – William Beaumont Army Medical Center was awarded an Environmental Excellence Platinum Award on May 8, 2024, for recycling medical tools and equipment. This is the first time WBAMC has been recognized at this level for their efforts and is the only hospital in west Texas and Southern New Mexico to receive an award such as this. Beaumont is also one of two military treatment facilities in the nation to be recognized for the award.
The recycler award incentivizes hospitals to cut costs without cutting the standards of patient care. Beaumont has diverted over 7,000 pounds of waste and reduced their supply chain costs by over $150,000.
“Beaumont is the only facility … to receive the platinum award,” said Alexander Buda, a licensed preventionist and control nurse specialist at WBAMC, “and you get these awards through recycling these medical supplies.”
When one-time-use medical supplies are not recycled, they are simply taken to a landfill and new ones are purchased to replace them. By recycling, Beaumont helps eliminate waste and save money.
“We pay the landfill by the pound when we throw away these supplies,” said Buda, “so that saves the hospital money on its own.”
Adding to the savings from the landfills, some companies offer the recycled products at a discounted rate. Like turning in empty five-gallon water jugs at the store and exchanging for a filled one.
“We're reducing the landfill waste and being cost conscious of the things that we're using,” said Dr. John Schriver, the chairman of the Clinical Review Committee at Beaumont, “but we're not compromising on quality.”
The Clinical Review Committee gets feedback from hospital staff on which recycled equipment they use that their department would like to order.
“There are some products we don't use,” Schriver said, “we don't impose upon any physician to use reprocessed equipment if they're uncomfortable with it.”
Patient safety remained a top priority while working towards implementing the medical recycling program, leading to the overall success of the program.
“Everything is approved by the Food and Drug Administration,” said Buda, “there’s no cutting corners and everything is vetted appropriately throughout the other agencies.”
Ensuring that everything is vetted takes a team that works together across departments from providers to infection prevention and control to logistics.
“It is definitely a hospital effort,” Schriver said. “It’s everyone who remembers to put a used pulse oximeter into the recycle bin, so this platinum award is a pat on the back for their efforts. We are reducing our impact on the environment and that benefits everybody, so we are proud that we are able to align with that.”
| Date Taken: | 05.29.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 06.06.2024 14:35 |
| Story ID: | 473267 |
| Location: | EL PASO, TEXAS, US |
| Web Views: | 174 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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Fort Bliss
