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The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated plastic pollution through the high use of personal protective equipment (PPE). The journey of a single use PPE gown starts from the creation of polypropylene from refined natural gas feedstock. The PPE gowns are then manufactured using coal and oil-based energy and transported 5,000 miles by sea. After a single use, the PPE items are then transported to a waste plant where they are incinerated at high temperature emitting high levels of pollution into the atmosphere.
To combat the harmful environmental impacts of single use PPE, we created a pilot studies in partnership with laundry provider Elis to introduce the usage of reusable PPE. Following the successful results of this pilot, including engagement and feedback from staff we will now be switching from single use disposable theatre caps and gowns to environmentally friendly, reusable alternatives made from cloth. The theatre caps will also be personalised with staff names and roles.
Doctor Andy Snell, who has been involved in implementing the reusable caps and gowns at the Trust, said:
“The use of reusable theatre hats and gowns allows for more comfortable working, better clinical practice, improved communication and greater environmental benefits. This switch will provide a range of benefits for patients, staff and Barnsley, some of which we already saw through the pilot and others that will come with the Trust-wide rollout.
“People can find it hard to distinguish each other when wearing PPE. The additional options some of this reusable gear will offer, such as names on the caps, will help to address this. We are introducing this change with a phased approach – with the successful pilots and feedback complete, we will now roll out caps and gowns across the Trust and ensure this continues to be successful, and then we can look at introducing these wider benefits. We’re also already considering our next steps to doing our bit to improve the environment.”
Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Delivery Officer, Bob Kirton added: “This is a really important step the Trust is taking and meets our commitments to helping improve place and planet. It is part of the Trust’s Green Plan and comes alongside other important steps like reducing our use of environmentally harmful, anaesthetic gases. Not only do steps like this benefit the environment, but they also improve patient and staff experience and mean we are contributing to making the planet better for our local population and future generations. By switching to reusable PPE, we will achieve a 66 per cent reduction on greenhouse gas and will reduce waste by 83 per cent”.
The hats and gowns will formally be introduced and operational from 24 April 2023.