Wednesday, December 6, 2023
The program 'What is holding us back,' aired by HUMAN broadcaster, recently highlighted the CO2 emissions of the healthcare sector. The program showcased the extensive disposal of materials and medical instruments in an incinerator after a single use. Together with experts in the field, the central question explored sustainable solutions: 'What is holding us back?'
Professor dr. Frank Willem Jansen, Chairman of the National Network The Green OR and President of Medical Delta, is featured in the program. He illustrates the waste generated during surgery and, alongside dr. ir. Anne van der Eijk (LUMC), presents alternatives. The broadcast also visits the recycling facility of Bart van Straten, associated with the Thesis Lab Sustainable Healthcare of LDE and Medical Delta, revealing containers filled with expensive instruments discarded after single use.
Watch the broadcast
The episode can be viewed on NPO Start through this link (NL).
Getting involved in the sustainability of healthcare? This page provides some helpful guides.
HUMAN broadcaster states, "Healthcare is based on a disposable culture, with hospitals being major polluters. Under the guise of efficiency and hygiene, eighty garbage trucks are discarded daily, filled with gloves, syringes, and isolation gowns. The CO2 emissions of the healthcare sector are nearly as significant as those of the aviation industry. Thus, the sector that improves our health is also contributing to significant health problems. However, there is an alternative. Much of the material can be safely reused. Healthcare can be more sustainable without becoming more expensive or riskier. What's holding us back from making a change?"
