Sustainability interventions in nursing wards
ADL
Reducing washing of unused (clean) linen
Keeping a stock of linen in the patient room, either by the bed or in the cupboard, is convenient but not always necessary. After discharge, the patient room is cleaned and any unused linen in the room is treated as used laundry and washed again.
Intervention
Take a critical look at the inventory of linen in the patient room by, for example, using a separate linen cart.
Implementation approach
- Look at the approach for reducing the use of a product.
- Conduct a baseline and follow-up measurement* to assess the current situation. Use a sample to determine the amount of unused linen that remains after a patient is discharged. Record the quantity and type of linen items, such as sheets, pillowcases, blankets, draw sheets, towels, washcloths, patient gowns/pyjamas, and any other items relevant to the hospital.
- Reduce the stock kept in patient rooms by storing linen in a separate cabinet or trolley in the hallway or a designated storage room. If this is not possible on the ward, minimise the in-room stock to a one-day supply and document this in the implementation plan.
- Consult the step-by-step guide for more information on setting goals, implementation, and evaluation.
Environmental impact
Measured in CO2 -emissions by reducing the number of kilograms of linen that are washed. Want to know more about the environmental impact? See the bottom of this page for more information.
The environmental impact has been calculated for 1 kg of dry linen*
Use and wash 1 kg of linen once = 0.45 kg CO2-eq
The example was made with the weights in the linen template. One towel weighs 208 grams.
* This includes production, transport, washing and waste treatment. It has been assumed that the linen will be washed 100 times and will then be replaced due to wear and tear.
100 clean towels, less washing saves
9.4
kg CO2-eq
and is equivalent to driving 48 km
When is it implemented?
This intervention is considered implemented when the set goal has been achieved, with less unused linen being washed compared to before the implementation, and the difference in CO₂-equivalent (kg) has been calculated.
How is this measured?
Use the linen input tool to calculate the total weight of the linen items and fill in the environmental impact calculator. These can be found in the MS Teams channel if your hospital participates in the Greening healthcare together program.
Note: Other interventions may affect the results of this one. If the "Reducing linen use" intervention is implemented at the same time, it may strengthen the calculated environmental impact. Implement the "Reduce linen use" intervention at a different time to measure the effect accurately.
Resources
Click here for an example from the United Kingdom where they conducted a pre- and post-measurement and implemented a linen trolley in the corridor.
View our other interventions
ADL
Reducing absorbent mat use
Disposable absorbent mats are designed to absorb large amounts of body fluids from patients. In practice, they are also used for other purposes, such as wiping up spilled liquids on the floor. In many cases, a towel or collection tray will suffice. Because of their high consumption in hospitals, absorbent mats have a significant environmental impact1.
Nursing practice
Wound care irrigation with tapwater
For acute wounds (traumatic or surgical), irrigation using a female catheter filled with lukewarm tap water is recommended instead of NaCl 0.9%. This increases patient comfort and reduces material use, as a new sterile NaCl 0.9% bottle or sterile collection tray is no longer needed every 24 hours.
Nursing practice
Reusable non-sterile suture removal set
Sutures can be removed with sterile disposable materials such as gauze, cotton swabs, tweezers, and scissors or a stitch cutter. The tweezers and scissors do not need to be sterile and can be replaced by clean, reusable ones that are cleaned and disinfected. This means the final sterilisation step is omitted after cleaning and disinfection. Mechanical cleaning (thermal disinfection) is preferred over manual cleaning.
