Calculating Impact
Your purchasing power can eliminate plastic waste with one of the lowest conversion costs. Addressing source reduction is an upstream solution that has a big impact on eliminating plastic with one of the lowest conversion costs. The investment of time and training are minimal, especially within surgical kits, when a similar single-use disposable surgical product is switched to one made with sustainable material. Comparable when it comes to clinical but a world of difference when it comes to environmental impact.
PROBLEM
Environmental impact of healthcare is significant.
SOLUTION
Clinical, climate-smart products offer impact with least amount of work flow disruption and cost.
OPPORTUNITY
What we buy matters.
What we buy has impact.
Plastics make up 85% of all equipment.1
Carbon footprint of healthcare is two gigatons CO2e.2
One million tons of single use plastic waste generated in U.S. healthcare system each year.3
Purchased goods carry embedded energy and carbon in their production, use and disposal; up to 71% of healthcare CO2 total.4
Sustainable procurement has direct benefit and health to the bottom line – bringing value to the critical responsibility of patient care.
36.5 million surgical procedures per year; NewGen Surgical product categories in every procedure.
Designed for the O.R. by healthcare professionals’ criteria – Ease of Clinical Integration
A combination of the pandemic, accelerated climate change and plastic pollution have pushed climate smart procurement to the forefront.
Built-in supply chain impact on planet and community. What we buy matters.
“For improved planetary health to be realized it is important that sectors that are impacted by environmental change, such as health, take a proactive role in understanding their own environmental impact. It is no longer sufficient to simply quantify the problems we face; health-care systems need to be much more effective stewards of the resources placed at their disposal.”
The Lancet, Carbon footprinting in health systems: one small step towards planetary health, Vol 1, December 2017
Small Change, Big Impact EPP program
The NewGen Surgical Small Change, Big Impact EPP® program provides a platform to measure impact through the environmentally preferable purchasing (EPP) of sustainably designed, single-use medical devices and products.
The Small Change, Big Impact EPP program will calculate:
- Reduced single-use plastic waste with measurable and meaningful cumulative environmental impacts.
- Reduced CO2e associated with the production of goods for the healthcare supply chain.
- Support sustainability-driven missions and goals - such as carbon commitments, EPP policies, leadership, retention, and waste management.
What you buy has impact
The healthcare supply chain usually flows in one direction, from manufacturer to user to waste bin. And the current healthcare waste management process is built to accommodate the plastics-intensive supply chain. Almost everything negotiated on behalf of the hospital to provide quality patient care will end up in a waste stream.
Why buy plastic if you don’t have to?
Hospitals are seeking products that align with the values in protecting human health and to address their contribution to pollution. New conversations are taking place with suppliers about more environmentally friendly options, chemicals of concern, supply chain transparency, total cost of ownership, and end-of-life disposal.
Reviewing products with a sustainability lens can help you “see” products from a materials-based view point and the connection between products and their environmental impact instead of the traditional cost-dependent equation.
Better inputs, better waste management
When you buy plastic, you dispose of plastic.
From the US EPA, the most environmentally and cost-effective approach to waste is source reduction and reuse. Source reduction, also referred to as pollution prevention, means any practice that reduces or eliminates waste at the source.
NewGen Surgical approaches source reduction through product redesign.
Smart Sustainable Design™
Performance, economic value and sustainability drive Smart Sustainable Design™.
Much like the healthcare industry’s emphasis treating root cause by focusing on wellness and prevention for people, NewGen Surgical is doing the same by examining and redesigning products with more sustainable materials on the front end to achieve a source reduction of plastic used and a reduction of end-of-life plastic pollution in the environment.
Our development process begins with a thorough understanding of the clinical performance doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals expect from a single-use disposable device. By rethinking, redesigning and reimagining a surgical product used every day in the operating room, we can reduce or eliminate plastic waste – and still deliver clinical performance at a price that brings value to our customers.
Greener Operations with NewGen Surgical
NewGen Surgical products are designed to replace existing plastic, single-use, disposal products without interrupting the workflow of hospital staff, surgical procedures or disposal.
- NewGen Surgical products are sourced from bio-based material
- Reduce CO2e by up to 80%
- Free of intentionally added BPA or BPA derived plastics, mercury, phthalates, and PVC
- Latex free
- The packaging is responsibly sourced and can be recycled if the hospital and their respective waste hauler providers support this service