Medical Waste

Quality Transformation: How Hospitals are Striking a Balance Between the Bottom Line & Better Care

Patient safety events, especially preventable ones, are on the rise at healthcare organizations. Meanwhile, frontline staff are burned out, and the current fiscal environment is exerting pressure on margins. Amid these interrelated challenges, it is difficult for health system leaders to manage competing priorities. Though many hospitals and health systems try to reduce expenses by cutting supply costs, the greatest opportunity for transformation is quality improvement. Becker’s Hospital Review recently spoke with two Vizient experts […]

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Learn How to Dispose of Your Used or Expired EpiPen

It’s common for people with severe food allergies to carry an EpiPen. This is a pen-like device prefilled with a drug called epinephrine that you inject into yourself in the event of an allergic emergency. The injection immediately opens the airways and relieves potentially life-threatening symptoms of severe allergic reactions like anaphylaxis. Having an EpiPen nearby is a precautionary measure that can save your life if you are accidentally exposed to an allergy-causing substance (an […]

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Sounding the Alarm About Disposable Plastic in Health Care

Yale’s Jodi Sherman says the health care industry must balance public health and planetary health when considering the use of disposable plastic items. To Jodi Sherman’s way of thinking, the Hippocratic Oath’s vow of doing no harm includes doing no harm to the planet — particularly when it comes to the sea of single-use plastic flooding the health care industry. Sherman, an associate professor of anesthesiology at Yale School of Medicine and of epidemiology in environmental […]

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Curtis Bay Energy Pleads Guilty to Improper Handling of Special Medical Waste

Curtis Bay Energy, the owner and operator of a medical waste incinerator facility in Baltimore, has pleaded guilty to charges related to the insufficient treatment and improper handling of special medical waste and the operation and concealment of an unpermitted discharge outlet. This sentence marks one of the largest penalties for an environmental criminal case administered by the Maryland attorney general’s office. Curtis Bay Energy has been placed on a 2-year probation and ordered to […]

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Johns Hopkins Professor Speaks on Cutting Healthcare Waste, Highlights New Partnership with Liberty School of Health Sciences

Liberty University School of Health Sciences welcomed Johns Hopkins University Professor of Surgery Dr. Marty Makary to campus on Sept. 14 to share on prevalent issues within the healthcare industry, such as the extreme costs of healthcare and insurance and the importance of challenging current scientific misconceptions. Makary serves as the chief of Islet Transplant Surgery for Johns Hopkins. He is a leading healthcare expert, a Fox News contributor, and a New York Times bestselling […]

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Kaiser Settles for $47 Million Over Dumping Medical Waste

On Sept. 8, with six district attorneys, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced a settlement with Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., and Kaiser Foundation Hospitals resolving allegations that the healthcare provider unlawfully disposed of hazardous waste, medical waste, and protected health information at Kaiser facilities statewide. As part of the settlement, Kaiser will be liable to pay up to $49 million and required to take steps to prevent future unlawful disposals. Kaiser: Will pay $47.250 […]

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Looking for Professional Medical Waste Solutions? Get Your Customized Quote Today!

At Waste Medic, we understand the diverse needs of organizations when it comes to regulated medical waste disposal, sharps management, pharmaceutical waste compliance, and more. We’re here to provide you with tailored solutions that instill confidence in your waste management processes. Medical waste generation can vary significantly between organizations, but having a reliable plan for biohazardous waste disposal is essential. Our team of experts is dedicated to addressing both your regular waste management needs and […]

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Improper Disposal of Medical Waste Costs Health Systems and the Environment

Health care is a major polluter both in terms of emissions and contributions to landfills. The combined health sectors of the United States, Australia, England, and Canada emit an estimated 748 million metric tons of greenhouse gases each year, more than all but the six top polluting countries in the world. Meanwhile, a report on 110 Canadian hospitals published in 2019 found those institutions generated nearly 87 000 tons of waste annually — roughly the […]

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Has the Time Come for a Medical Waste Audit at Your Organization?

Health care organizations and medical professionals have shown a strong interest in reducing their greenhouse gas emissions. Integrating sustainability into all aspects of a hospital’s mission takes focused commitment across the organization, as Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) leaders can attest. Two years ago, MGH launched its Center for the Environment and Health. The center integrates sustainability into MGH’s clinical, research and educational activities and is designed to improve the environmental health of the hospital and […]

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