benchmarks 2013 finalThe Green Healthcare Programme has issued benchmarks for hospital waste based on three years of analysis and 99 detailed waste surveys carried out by the project team in 30 participating hospitals.

The benchmarks include both risk and non-risk waste, showing the total waste generated per in-patient bed day in kg (click on graphic to enlarge).

They also breakdown these totals (7.7kg for acute hospitals, and 3.7 kg for primary community continuing care (PCCC) facilities) into the four streams:

  • Healthcare risk waste
  • Food waste
  • Mixed recyclables
  • General landfill waste

These benchmarks are a very worthwhile tool that allows a healthcare facility to identify if they produce more or less waste than the average GHCP facility. If a hospital greatly exceeds these benchmarks, it may need to consider the reasons for this and implement improvement options.

Click here to download a graphic showing the benchmark.