scheduled, the unit does not need to be emp-
tied between each case. "Our old disposable
canisters held 3 liters each and the circulating
nurse had to move the suction tube from one
canister to the next when they would fill up,"
says Mr. Jones.
The new mobile collection system is "a huge
timesaver," says Ms. Polking. "You can keep the
units in the OR and dispose of the fluid waste
between cases with a single trip to the docking
station," she says. "Staff spend less time replac-
ing filled canisters with empty ones during
cases. That makes their jobs much easier."
Going green
The upgrades Iowa City VA and Overlook Medical Center made to
their fluid collection practices has caught the attention of Practice
Greenhealth, an organization that recognizes healthcare facilities for
their efforts to make their working operations greener. Both facilities
received the organization's 2018 Environmental Excellence Award for
keeping countless containers of solidified waste from reaching local
landfills.
Mr. Wechsler emphasizes that his facility's focus on improving fluid
waste collection practices centered on ways to protect staff and sur-
geons. "We originally converted to using mobile collection units to
increase the safety to our surgical team," he says. "That the system
helped us go green was a welcome secondary benefit that further
enhanced our hospital-wide commitment to environmental sustain-
ability."
OSM
A U G U S T 2 0 1 8 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y. N E T • 2 9
"Never stop looking
for new and better
ways to dispose of
fluid waste."
— Martin Jones
Pamela
Bevelhymer,
RN,
BSN,
CNOR
