Going Green Efforts at Baylor Plano

In 2009, Baylor Regional Medical Center at Plano initiated several programs to help reduce our impact on the environment.

 

The first program was the BioSystem Waste Reduction Program which uses eco-friendly reusable sharps containers in all of the clinical areas. The containers are collected by an outside technician that sends them to a processing center where they are opened, emptied and disinfected for reuse. One reusable container prevents 500 disposable containers from going to a landfill.

 

In the year 2009 Baylor Plano prevented 27,225.6 pounds of plastic containers from going into landfills. From January to March 2010 Baylor Plano prevented 6,873.7 pounds of plastic containers from going into landfills. The entire Baylor Healthcare System is utilizing this program and saved more than 416,308 pounds in total during 2009 and saved 110,727.9 pounds between January and March 2010.

 

The second program we have initiated is the facility-wide recycling program. Blue recycle bins were placed on all units in March 2009 and everyone has helped reduce our waste of paper, plastic, and metal by placing these materials in the bins. From July 2009 through March 2010, we recycled 37.11 tons of material.

 

Not only are we helping our environment, but we also have received a benefit in cost savings. Based on the reduction in waste due to the recycling, we have saved approximately $2,999 in waste disposal fees. We also have benefited from the rebates for the recycled materials and since March 2009, we have collected $1,045.33. As a not-for-profit hospital, all savings go directly back into patient care allowing us to acquire new equipment and offer additional education programs to our clinical staff.