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G R E E N
P R A C T I C E S
ver that we wash and reuse," says Ms. Mackler.
West Virginia University Hospitals in Morgantown, W.Va., keeps most
of its blue wrap out of the landfill by collecting it in separate containers
and making it available to hospital employees who want it. "You'd be
surprised how many people want that wrap for things like painting projects at home, packing to move, donating to their vet or a variety of
other projects," says Mary Wilson, RN, BSN, CNOR, WVUH's clinical
preceptor/educator.
2. Train staff to dispose of waste in the right receptacle. A recycling program is only as good as your frontline staff's commitment to
the program. An oftenoverlooked element of
success is training
your staff to place
waste in the proper
receptacle. Don't
assume that your staff
knows what is and
isn't red bag waste.
They'll often throw
waste into the closest
trash receptacle.
Teach and constantly
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O U T PAT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E | D E C E M B E R 2012
