Good healthcare depends on getting supplies and equipment on time. But this often harms the environment. Healthcare supply chains make a lot of packaging waste. They also use many single-use disposable items. Transportation and making these supplies cause large amounts of greenhouse gas emissions.
For example, the US healthcare sector makes about 6 million tons of waste each year. Plastic makes up 20-25% of this waste. Unfortunately, 91% of that plastic is not recycled. It ends up in landfills or the natural environment. This plastic can pollute the environment and release harmful chemicals and tiny plastic particles, which can affect health.
The COVID-19 pandemic caused a 40% rise in demand for disposable personal protective equipment (PPE). This added a lot more plastic waste. But it did not always help prevent infections better. This shows there are waste problems in supply use.
Medical supply chains are very important in areas like blood platelet management. About 20% of platelets collected in the U.S. are wasted because they expire. Platelets only last 5 to 7 days and must be moved quickly to processing centers. Problems or delays in supply chains cause waste, money loss, and worse health results for patients.
To lower environmental harm and waste, healthcare should use green or sustainable supply chain management (GSCM). These methods help cut carbon emissions, reduce waste, and improve how supply chains work.
One good way to reduce impact is sustainable procurement. This means choosing suppliers who show they reduce waste, save energy, and use responsible materials. Hospitals that buy from local suppliers cut down on long shipments that cause more emissions.
Medical centers in the U.S. can ask suppliers to use biodegradable or recyclable products. This lowers the use of single-use plastics. Even though 85% of healthcare plastics could be recycled, lack of recycling systems and rules in the U.S. stop this from happening.
Hospitals have set up ways to manage waste better. They separate waste types, use better packaging, and bring in reusable and recyclable products. For example, the Cleveland Clinic saved over $100 million since 2010 by cutting energy use and waste in surgery services. Gundersen Health System improved energy use by 54%, saving $28 million and recycling 45% of its solid waste.
Properly sorting waste helps lower costs because throwing regular garbage away as medical waste costs more. Some facilities reuse shipping containers and materials, stopping them from going to landfills. Yale New Haven Health cut 1,600 tons of CO2 emissions by changing to anesthetic gases that are better for the environment.
Choosing the right places for collecting and processing supplies can cut how far materials must travel. This lowers emissions. Studies show that using math models for choosing blood donation and processing spots can reduce CO2 emissions and costs while making sure supplies arrive on time. This helps balance efficiency with caring for the environment.
Hospitals with many locations should plan supply routes to avoid extra trips, combine deliveries, and pick logistics companies that use fuel-efficient or electric vehicles.
Many healthcare leaders worry that green efforts will cost too much. But saving energy and cutting waste often lead to much lower costs over time.
For example, Providence Health and Services cut greenhouse gas emissions by 94% and costs by 70% by not using certain anesthetics and going green in other ways. This shows that green actions can go with saving money. It also helps hospitals use their budgets better.
Going green can improve how patients and regulators see healthcare groups. More people expect hospitals to be responsible for the environment.
Healthcare leaders need to plan carefully. They must balance patient safety, smooth operations, and caring for the environment.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and automation are helping healthcare supply chains become greener. This is important for hospitals and medical practices across the U.S.
AI can study past data, current trends, and things like seasons or health events to better guess what supplies are needed. This helps avoid buying too much or wasting supplies like medicines, vaccines, and blood.
Keeping the right stock lowers emergency shipments. This reduces emissions from fast delivery transport.
Automation helps with buying, billing, and ordering supplies on time. It cuts manual mistakes and stops ordering too much. This means less waste and fewer emissions from making and moving supplies.
AI also helps plan delivery routes that use less fuel by looking at vehicle size, distance, and urgency.
AI energy systems can check real-time data at hospitals to use heating, cooling, lighting, and equipment better. This lowers the healthcare sector’s carbon footprint.
Places that use solar, geothermal, or other renewables plus AI save money and reduce harm to the environment.
AI tools let healthcare leaders track waste, emissions, and energy use in supply chains and buildings. This helps with following rules and getting support for green projects.
These data help medical managers find where changes bring the most benefit to the environment and budget.
Healthcare leaders like practice administrators, IT managers, and owners are responsible for cutting their supply chains’ environmental impact. They should choose sustainable suppliers, teach staff about sorting waste, and use technology to improve supply chain transparency and efficiency.
Training staff about climate and waste can improve sorting and lower waste costs. Joining programs that hold manufacturers responsible for the environmental effects of their products can encourage better product designs that can be recycled or reused.
By using green practices and technology, healthcare supply chains can be more sustainable without hurting patient care or efficiency. Medical practice administrators, owners, and IT managers in the U.S. have the tools and options to make important changes that fit healthcare’s mission and protect the environment.
The study focuses on minimizing waste and optimizing the supply chain for highly perishable products, specifically blood platelets, by integrating green practices into the management process to reduce carbon emissions and costs.
Due to the perishable nature of blood platelets, which have a limited shelf-life of five to seven days, ensuring efficient collection and distribution while minimizing waste presents significant challenges.
The study employs a mathematical model to formulate the optimal location-allocation of blood donation facilities to enhance collection efficiency, reduce CO2 emissions, and control overall costs.
Optimal location-allocation impacts the efficiency of supply chains, enhancing service delivery and minimizing waste, especially in urgent healthcare products like blood platelets.
By implementing green logistics and optimizing transportation routes and facility locations, the study aims to minimize CO2 emissions generated from transport activities.
AI enhances healthcare delivery by streamlining logistical operations, particularly in managing healthcare databases and improving efficiency, though research in this area is still developing.
The model provides insights into effectively managing blood collection and distribution processes, improving response times, and ultimately ensuring timely supply of perishable products.
Challenges include complexity in logistics, the high perishability of products, and the need for innovative solutions to implement sustainable practices effectively.
Approximately 20% of collected platelets are wasted due to expiration, with higher wastage rates reported in developing countries, emphasizing the need for better supply chain management.
The study notes that while there is increasing interest in green supply chain management, specific focus and research on healthcare applications remain limited, indicating an area for further exploration.
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