LAKELAND, Fla., April 5 /PRNewswire/ -- The California Department of Health Services has recommended Vanguard Medical Concepts’ medical device reprocessing program as a way for hospitals to reduce the flow of medical waste into landfills. It is one of six recommendations for reducing medical waste outlined in a guidance document released by the agency’s Environmental Management Branch Chief Jack McGurk.
An estimated 50,000 tons of medical waste are generated annually in California. The DHS document outlines six medical waste reduction strategies hospitals in the state can implement to protect the community, improve the environment and produce substantial operational cost savings. They are:
1. Eliminate solid wastes from the medical waste stream 2. Use lighter weight, high-density Bio-Elite red bags for medical waste storage 3. Implement a blue wrap recycling program 4. Install re-usable sharps containers 5. Use sharps containers manufactured with recycled plastic 6. Recycle single use medical devices
The guidance document is posted on the agency’s Web site at: http://www.dhs.ca.gov/medicalwaste .
The guidance document focuses on a new program Vanguard is implementing in more than 130 California hospitals. It uses 17-gallon recycling containers to collect used surgical devices for reprocessing. As part of the program, Vanguard documents and reports data to participating hospitals about the weight of devices diverted from their medical waste streams. The document also notes that Vanguard is FDA-approved and its containers meet federal Department of Transportation standards.
Vanguard is a “Champion” of the national Hospitals for a Healthy Environment initiative and works actively to assist healthcare facilities in reducing medical waste and toxins from the environment. In 2003, Vanguard eliminated 439 tons of medical waste through its reprocessing programs at more than 900 hospitals nationwide.
Vanguard Medical Concepts Inc. ( http://www.safe-reuse.com/ ) is the nation’s largest medical device reprocessor, serving more than 1,000 health care facilities nationwide. Since 1991, Vanguard has reprocessed more than 13 million devices. As a Champion of the national Hospitals for a Healthy Environment initiative, Vanguard now offers two new customer programs -- Vanguard Advantage(R) and Rapid Return(R) -- that combine maximum savings with environmental stewardship. Vanguard operates a quality management system that complies with the requirements of ISO 13485: 1996 for reprocessing medical devices for health care facilities. Its headquarters are in Lakeland, Fla.
Website: http://www.safe-reuse.com http://www.dhs.ca.gov/medicalwaste
Vanguard Medical Concepts Inc.
CONTACT: Mark Salomon, SVP, corporate development, Vanguard MedicalConcepts, +1-800-887-9073; Carolyn Reis, CBR Public Relations,+1-407-834-7777