Our new paper medicine cups are a fantastic example of how sustainability is becoming embedded across our region-wide health service. The use of plastic medicine cups had been raised as an issue by staff, the SWH Sustainability Committee and some of our patients. Our clinical product advisor Steph Hughes identified the paper version as a suitable replacement for 95% of the plastic medicine cups we’ve been using.
The cups are wax-free and plastic-free and 100% biodegradable/compostable. They decompose within 2-6 weeks in general waste. They can also be recycled and composted and we’re about to start investigating options to divert them away from landfill.
To top it off, they’re going to save us around $65,000 a year, organisation-wide. That’s the difference in price between paper and the traditional plastic. We’ll still need to use a 30ml graduated plastic medicine cup for elixir medications (where a designated medication syringe is not used).
This is a terrific example of an initiative with both environmental and financial benefits.
Pictured here are some very happy Acute Unit staff with the new paper medicine cups: associate nurse unit manager Christine Pritchard (from left), registered nurse Jen Howe, Steph Hughes, clinical nurse specialist Narelle Grummett, registered nurse Olivia Beavis and graduate registered nurses Kerrie Griffiths and Gina Canfield.
Shared with permission from South West Healthcare
