THE MEDICAL WASTE ISSUE

In an age of state and federal emphasis on the reduction of medical waste in the United States,  national statistics show that there are over two million tons of medical waste going to landfills and/or incinerators, etc everyday. The raw analysis and data from the MERCI program have proven that most of the surgical waste coming out of the Operating Room is not infectious. The problem is not only a "lack of segregation" of medical waste by the staff but also a lack of knowing what to do “with” all the collected clean medical supplies.  It is likely that this phenomenon will also be proven to be true in all areas of medical clinics, hospital units, etc.. What has also been proven by the MERCI program is that there abundant information to be derived from a MERCI-like program that is useful in the management of any hospital. I  purport that MERCI is about the segregation of “GOLD WASTE”, a phrase I have coined, which reveals what is going into the waste stream thereby enabling one to make positive changes in ones waste stream. Waste audits performed by many people indicate that only about 15% of medical waste generated by hospitals is infectious. My opinion is that out of the other 85% of medical waste, that over 50% consists of clean, or sterile, or unused medical supplies.

Since unwarranted materials are generally not acceptable for hospital use, the only option that most hospitals take is to discard them. But this practice poses an environmental issue, i.e. adding to the waste stream. However, most of this waste is not true waste, it is “GOLD WASTE”, the recovery of which should, in my humble opinion, be the 4^th "R" in RRR i.e. RECOVER, REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE.

As the founder of MERCI, through my expertise of thirty three years as a nurse who is well versed in Clinical & QA waste issues, I have judicially and thoughtfully through research, coordinating and networking, set up a safe program of segregation, diversion, and processing of discarded clean medical supplies. I firmly believe that MERCI is not about the monetary nor the statistical results, but is about the humanitarian and educational components that benefit and that bless the underprivileged. The hearts of the staff at the University of Virginia Health System and the University of Virginia shines through with every single donation they have made to MERCI since 1992 as well as those of company reps and others who have made generous donations to MERCI.

Blessings,

Helen French RN, BSN