Sharp(s)-Minded Environmentalism
By: Markus Koch, CEO of Daniels Sharpsmart
“Green” is used so often to describe such a broad range of environmentalism efforts that I’m afraid it’s lost some of its meaning. As global companies seek to be identified as “good corporate citizens”, many green initiatives come across more as marketing promotions or “astroturfing” than providing real environmental benefit.
However, there are numerous genuine, sustained efforts to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions or reuse resources in an increasingly resource-constrained world. And more often than not, these efforts are not just altruistic; they can directly benefit the customer with smarter, better approaches than those that ultimately harm the environment. Although, the choice isn’t clear or simple. Companies are often confronted with difficult choices, and not just cost vs. benefit. And in industries such as medical waste and healthcare there are many different opposing forces, and real environmentalism may seem difficult to achieve.
For example, consider Daniels’ own history. The company was founded in the early years of the HIV healthcare crisis. Protecting healthcare workers’ safety was paramount. Being eco-friendly was the last thing on the minds of healthcare facilities, when the most sensible approach seemed to be to simply discard anything that might be ‘contaminated’. Daniels had to find a solution that ensured safety for healthcare workers and patients at a time of great concern but that also did not add to the growing environmental burden of increased waste volumes. It was this analysis that led to arguably the world’s safest and most environmentally responsible sharps management system, Daniels Sharpsmart.
Ultimately, Daniels had to choose between two possible approaches in developing the Sharpsmart container: Disposable or Reusable sharps containers. Our analysis essentially came down to this:
• Disposable Containers: A poor environmental choice. Disposable containers for sharps and pharmaceutical waste are destroyed along with the contents. All that waste goes straight to landfill and must be replaced by another manufactured container that will likely have the same end. • Reusable Containers: An environmentally-friendly choice because when filled, only the waste inside the container is destroyed. Comparatively, for every reusable sharps container manufactured 500 disposables are manufactured. Or looking at it on a larger scale, each year, for every 100 occupied hospital beds, the Daniels Sharpsmart reusable sharps container: o Reduces plastic waste by 7,000 lbs o Reduces cardboard waste by 720 lbs o Eliminates manufacture of disposable containers by 4,691units
For Daniels Sharpsmart, choosing the eco-friendly approach was not only a key decision in our history; it also forced us to examine how to provide the best product to our customers. It led us to examine the entire lifecycle of sharps and pharmaceutical waste – what we call our Circle of Safety. Today, Daniels Sharpsmart containers are automatically emptied, hygienically cleaned to exceed infection control requirements and returned to a healthcare facility. That means our customers’ environmental impact is minimized, and they are not paying for the manufacture of new containers – environmentally responsible, and cost-effective.
But what exactly is the overall impact for healthcare facilities who switch to the Daniels Sharpsmart system? Our research shows that Daniels Sharpsmart containers are likely to reduce the volume of plastic in sharps waste by over 25% when compared with typical disposable sharps container systems. But we didn’t stop our research there. In collaboration with the Waterman Group, a leading environmental consultancy organization in the UK, we also conducted a complete life cycle assessment of reusable and disposable sharps containers that revealed that the overall ‘carbon footprint’ of a Sharpsmart reusable container can be up to 86% less than that of single-use disposable containers.
While this is great news for the environment, it also ends up being critical in terms of the needs of hospitals. How? First, Daniels Sharpsmart helps healthcare facilities around the world that are facing increased regulations to reduce the environmental impact of their waste streams. And second, Daniels reusable sharps containers offer great economic value because they reduce sharps injuries, which are costly not only in monetary terms to healthcare facilities but more importantly in human terms to the doctors and nurses who suffer the injuries.
As governments and individuals around the world become increasingly concerned about the potential impact of greenhouse gases on global warming and climate change, Daniels has increased its efforts to ensure that its products help customers act responsibly as they work towards reducing carbon emissions. Daniels has formed “smart” alliances with service providers, such as Sharps Compliance, to provide the most efficient and cost-effective solution to meet the needs of all types of health care organizations. And Daniels will continue research in this area so healthcare facilities using the Sharpsmart system can be assured they are playing their part in looking after our planet's health.
And that’s something we all can get behind.