Sustainability
Even though our ‘ waste ’ can benefit others in poorer countries , the extent of what we discard and the associated costs of this to the UK is , in our view , at a shocking level .”
Sustainability
Feature
L ast year , this magazine detailed the work of UK charity Belief in Action in recycling and repurposing disability equipment and aids ( OTnews , June 2022 , pages 36-38 ). Destined for UK landfill , these items are transported on lorries that have already offloaded goods in the UK and are returning to Romania otherwise empty .
In Romania , Belief in Action supports a registered charity to run a loan scheme through which the aids and equipment are made available to people who have no feasible access to any . The distribution of equipment is only a small part of the provision of services for people with disabilities in the area of Braşov , in which the charity operates , and UK therapists regularly visit to provide ongoing advice , training and assessments .
As the activity of Belief in Action in obtaining unwanted aids and equipment has grown and developed , it has clarified wasted opportunities to refurbish , recycle and retain items within the UK healthcare system .
Even though our ‘ waste ’ can benefit others in poorer countries , the extent of what we discard and the associated costs of this to the UK is , in our view , at a shocking level .
Poor or inefficient procedures
Examples of what is observed includes the following . Locally in the south west , Belief in Action partners with a major equipment supplier who has a significant contract for several local social care services .
Currently , many items are identified as ‘ redundant ’ and placed in waste skips located at the contractor ’ s stores as destined for landfill , despite them being in full working order . Ironically , Belief in Action also receives privately donated items as it has been advised that the equipment provider does not want these returned .
Items might also be placed in waste skips due to them not being originally issued by the contractor and , as such , there is no audit trail or system whereby they can be repurposed .
The default position is to assign them to waste rather than to establish the means for them to reenter the system , especially when staff are busy and under pressure to deliver on the contract . While this is partly understandable , it is disappointing that no consideration is given to other organisations who could benefit from obtaining these .
There is widespread anecdotal evidence of poor or inefficient procedures to collect equipment from service users which is no longer required . Comments such as ‘ I phoned them , but they never collected it ’, ‘ they don ’ t want it back ’, ‘ you can sell it ’, or ‘ it ’ s not worth the cost to collect ’, are frequently heard .
Even though our ‘ waste ’ can benefit others in poorer countries , the extent of what we discard and the associated costs of this to the UK is , in our view , at a shocking level .”
Many private hospitals , often fulfilling NHS surgical contracts , actively discourage patients who have undergone routine joint replacement surgery to return walking aids that have been used for up to a maximum duration of 12 weeks .
In our experience , many smaller aids , such as walking sticks , crutches , helping hands or items considered damaged , are not considered economically viable to reuse . Examples include commodes with the pan or a rubber leg tip missing , ferrules damaged or missing from walking aids , scratches on items – which is considered unhygienic – and worn brake blocks on walkers .
With minor repairs , these items could be quickly and cost effectively re-entered into the supply chain .
In a recent ( and in our view ) astounding instance , a large number of fully operational , profiling hospital beds in good condition , but at the end of their lease period with a UK hospital trust , were rapidly disposed of by an asset management company dealing with the trust ’ s assets .
While the beds were initially offered and accepted by the charity , removal of such a quantity required logistics that could not be organised within the very short notice period required .
Local initiatives to plug the gap
The most significant failing appears to be a lack of a total healthcare system strategy to reduce waste and environmental impact , implement a transparent process for all areas and work creatively to make cost savings .
Locally founded initiatives are springing up and we can briefly report on one or two . For example , the main contracted equipment provider in the Bristol area is looking to identify recycling ‘ champions ’ to be based at its different distribution stores and whose task it will be to identify equipment for recycling and liaise with the charity for removal .
We now have an established process with three local private hospitals to collect unwanted walking aids , which they are now accepting on our behalf .
June 2023 OTnews 25