Abstract
Waste disposal is an issue that affects us all. The amount and toxicity of medical waste has increased in line with increasing medical facilities and diagnostic and therapeutic procedures. Demand for landfill sites and increasing household and hospital waste loads, have made the current situation untenable. New thinking and new strategies must be employed
To investigate waste production in the operating department during a primary total hip arthroplasty.
A prospective observational study, waste from packaging and non-clinical materials in fifty consecutive total hip replacements. Weight, volume, cost of disposal and percentage of recycled items were recorded. Inappropriate segregation of waste was recorded and the hazards involved are discussed.
Domestic waste is compressed and buried at a cost of €222($383)/tonne. This extrapolates into a cost of about €1,500($2,589) yearly in the region and over €10,000($17,000) in Ireland. Cost to the environment, 2.6 tonnes locally, and 18.9 tonnes of surgical waste/year. Biological waste buried at €880 ($1,518)/tonne.
Reduce, Reuse and Recycle are the cornerstones of waste management. Medical staff need to understand how best to segregate waste and take advantage of opportunities for reuse and recycling. We must revisit the packaging of implants, the use of recycled paper.
The abstracts were prepared by Editorial Secretary Jean-Claude Theis. Correspondence should be addressed to NZOA at Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Dunedin Hospital, Private Bag 1921, Dunedin, New Zealand.
