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Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust

Improving Resource Efficiency

02.

Improving Resource Efficiency

a single leaf

The majority of carbon emissions from healthcare are from the supply chain, which also has a direct impact on financial resources. During Covid the use of single use items, particularly PPE, has dramatically increased. However, it has also resulted in innovation in the supply chain and a realisation of the risk inherent in the global supply chain. The NHS has a target to be net zero for all of its purchased items by 2045.


Our aims

  • Reduce water consumption by 5%
  • Reduce single use plastic used for catering by 50%
  • Reduce food waste by 50%
  • Increase recycling by 25%
  • Increase reuse across the trust
  • Remove single use PPE where possible
  • Reduce clinical single use plastics

ACTIONTIMESCALE
Install water efficient sanitary ware 2022
Add water meters to areas of high use 2023
Replace plastic vending cups with paper 2022
Introduce electronic meal ordering for patient meals 2023
Review single use and reusable theatre sets to remove unnecessary items 2022
Introduce reusable options for takeaway food 2022
Introduce electric vehicles for our leased fleet Ongoing
Determine the reasons for wasted food and create a reduction action plan. 2022
Promote WarpIt and integrate it with the Procurement process to create a culture of reuse and refurbishment 2022
Target high use plastic items for reduction 2022/23
Create a better measure of Scope 3 emissions 2022
Increase segregation of recyclable items at source Ongoing
Review the appropriate use of PPE, reduce where appropriate and in-vestigate the options for expanding the use of reusable PPE 2022
Work with organisations innovating new sustainable waste disposal alternatives. Ongoing
Use our purchasing power wisely, by working with suppliers to procure products that minimise packaging use and offer innovative solutions to waste reduction, including take back schemes. Ongoing

How will we measure it:

  • Meter readings of water
  • Ordering information from catering
  • Plastics audit and reporting of medical consumables
  • Measurements of food waste from catering team and contractor
  • Procurement data
  • Waste Management invoices
  • Carbon value and hotspots from procurement information
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