Recycling in Connecticut, How Recycling Medical Waste Saves Money
Imagine there was a way to reduce the amount of money hospitals spend every year on disposable items like syringes? What if that amount could be estimated in billions of dollars?
Every day, hospitals and other health providers produce 11.7 tons of waste. It is estimated that American hospitals spend $10 billion annually on waste disposal. Of this, about 10 to 15 percent is considered biohazardous.
There is a new medical waste recycling process that sterilizes the materials without having to expose workers to the potential dangers of bio pathogen exposure.
Sterilize Medical Equipment
Recycling medical waste by sterilizing it while it is still in the biohazard box isn’t just some fantasy, it’s already in use. Waste Management Healthcare Solutions is recycling almost 70% of all biohazard waste from the hospitals that use its waste removal systems. This is only the beginning of their efforts, with future advancements it may be possible to increase this even more.
The exact process first segregates the biohazard waste from regular hospital waste and places it in a sterilization chamber. The entire box is super heated with steam and then shredded without removing anything from it. The materials are then melted to separate the plastics from the metals. Plastics are processed into pellets that can be used in injection molding machines while the metals are recovered and sent for further reclamation.
This process is expected to reduce hospital waste disposal costs by up to 10% just on biohazardous needles and other sharps. Not only costs, but total waste will also be reduced meaning that there will be less need for raw materials. This makes it both environmentally and economically favorable for hospitals. The higher cost of recycled syringes will be offset by the lowered cost of waste removal making it a win-win situation for everyone.
Key Takeaways:
- Hospitals should be looking for a forward thinking waste management company in CT.
- Savings on high price hazardous waste removal can be reduced, if not eliminated by the right service.
Need Help?
Interested in learning more about how recycling medical waste can save your company money, contact us today!
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