Drug Waste & Expired Stock

anaesthetic awareness drugs environment intravenous waste Oct 03, 2024

Saving every drop - IV drug wastage in healthcare ๐Ÿ’ง

Here’s something to ponder the next time you’re restocking the drugs in your Anaesthetic trolley. ๐Ÿค” ๐Ÿ›’

Consider the IV drug life cycle - ๐Ÿ”„

๐ŸญHow was the drug manufactured? 

๐Ÿ“ฆHow was it packaged? 

๐ŸššHow far has it been transported to end up here in your hands? 

โš ๏ธHow many additional single-use items are needed to safely administer it? 

โ“How much of this drug will be wasted? 

โ™ป๏ธHow will it, and those single-use items, be disposed of? 

๐ŸŒAnd finally - what sort of carbon footprint do ALL of those things leave? 

IV drug formulations have a significantly higher footprint than oral formulations, for example, the IV formulation of Ciprofloxacin has a carbon footprint 60 times higher than that of its oral counterpart! โš–๏ธ

Unfortunately, in the Operating Suite, IV medications are a mainstay, but there are still small considerations and changes we can make to help reduce the mark we leave on our environment - such as:

๐Ÿ’ŠCan an oral pre-med, such as Panadol, be given to avoid administering IV?

๐Ÿ’ง Careful fluid management can reduce unnecessary use of multiple fluid bags.

๐Ÿงบ Can that drug tray be reused?

๐ŸŒฌ๏ธ Can we use TIVA to reduce volatile gas usage and reduce IV drug waste?

โ“ Does your patient really need a PCA? Can they have oral or sublingual pain relief post-operatively?

๐Ÿ—‘๏ธ Can you minimise the volume of waste thrown into sharps containers and contaminated waste bins?

โš ๏ธ Do those IV drugs in your trolley that are close to expiry have “use first” labels on them?

In the fight against waste, every small effort counts! ๐Ÿ’ช Together we can make a difference.

Build Knowledge โœ…
Improve Safety โœ…

Refs:

AAMC (2024) Drugs used in Hospitals leave giant carbon footprint. https://www.aamc.org/news/drugs-used-hospitals-leave-giant-carbon-footprint


Lane, S.F. (2020) The environmental sustainability of propofol use in daily practice. British Journal of Anaesthesia. Vol 124(6) pp 221-222. https://www.bjanaesthesia.org/article/S0007-0912(20)30165-3/fulltext

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