Solutions to health care waste: life-cycle thinking and "green" purchasing

Environmental Health Perspectives
Barb KaiserH Shaner

Abstract

Health care waste treatment is linked to bioaccumulative toxic substances, such as mercury and dioxins, which suggests the need for a new approach to product selection. To address environmental issues proactively, all stages of the product life cycle should be considered during material selection. The purchasing mechanism is a promising channel for action that can be used to promote the use of environmentally preferable products in the health care industry; health care facilities can improve environmental performance and still decrease costs. Tools that focus on environmentally preferable purchasing are now emerging for the health care industry. These tools can help hospitals select products that create the least amount of environmental pollution. Environmental performance should be incorporated into the evolving definition of quality for health care.

References

Sep 1, 1991·Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association·H GlasserD C Hickman
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Jul 1, 1995·Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine·D R GraberD Holmes

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Citations

Jul 20, 2014·The Annals of Thoracic Surgery·Rafael S AndradeLynn Thelen
Sep 3, 2002·Environmental Health Perspectives·Patrick D Eagan, Barb Kaiser
Jan 23, 2009·Waste Management·Chen YangFu Shasha
Apr 23, 2016·Current Problems in Surgery·Anna WeissDaniel Klaristenfeld
Oct 11, 2014·Journal of Health Services Research & Policy·Rosario VidalAgustín Ortega
Oct 31, 2009·The Laryngoscope·Robin T Cotton, Aliza P Cohen
May 23, 2019·Health Care Management Review·Christin SeifertEdeltraud Guenther
Dec 18, 2014·Environmental Science & Technology·Cassandra L ThielMelissa M Bilec
Aug 20, 2021·European Journal of Cardio-thoracic Surgery : Official Journal of the European Association for Cardio-thoracic Surgery·Daniel GrinbergPierre-Jean Cottinet

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