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Auditing Operating Room Recycling: A Management Case Report
Forbes McGain1, Katherine Maria Jarosz, Martin Ngoc Hoai Huong Nguyen
1From the Departments of *Anaesthesia and †Intensive Care, Western Health, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Abstract:
Much waste arises from operating rooms (ORs). We estimated the practical and financial feasibility of an OR recycling program, weighing all waste from 6 ORs in Melbourne, Australia. Over 1 week, 237 operations produced 1265 kg in total: general waste 570 kg (45%), infectious waste 410 kg (32%), and recyclables 285 kg (23%). The achieved recycling had no infectious contamination. The achieved recycling/potential recycling rate was 285 kg/517 kg (55%). The average waste disposal costs were similar for general waste and recycling. OR recycling rates of 20%-25% total waste were achievable without compromising infection control or financial constraints.
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