Reusable, multiuse options needed to decrease operating room waste
Cataract surgeons believe more reusable and multiuse options are needed to decrease operating room waste, according to a presentation at the virtual American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting.
“The background for this is studies from the Aravind Hospital System in southern India showing that their carbon footprint for phaco is one-twentieth of what we have in the U.S. because they try to reuse everything,” David F. Chang, MD, said on behalf of the Ophthalmic Instrument Cleaning and Sterilization Task Force. “In spite of this, their infection rate is even lower than ours in the U.S., suggesting that so much of our surgical waste due to single use is excessive and of unproven benefit for endophthalmitis prevention.”
More than 1,000 cataract surgeons responded to an e-survey about attitudes toward OR waste. Ninety percent of respondents are concerned about global warming and climate change, 93% think OR trash is excessive, 93% think there should be new approaches to reduce waste, and 78% think there should be new ways to reuse supplies and instruments. Only 5% of respondents said no change in OR waste is needed.
Respondents said regulatory policies (82%), manufacturers’ drive toward profitable single-use products (77%) and hospital/facility policies (74%) are the biggest drivers of waste generation in ophthalmic ORs.
“There’s a strong consensus that we should be concerned about global warming and excessive OR trash,” Chang said. “We need more reusable and multiuse options with a strong preference for more reusable instruments, as well as the greater consideration of carbon footprint by our manufacturers.”
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Chang DF, et al. Survey of cataract surgeons’ attitudes towards OR waste. Presented at: American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting; Nov. 13-15, 2020 (virtual meeting).
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