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Dental and Medical Offices

Waste Reduction Fact Sheet

Many companies have gone beyond minimum regulatory requirements and have implemented a waste reduction program. In general, waste reduction can improve the efficiency of your operation while reducing its environmental impact. Benefits include:

• Reduced material waste, waste handling and disposal costs.
• Reduced liability (environmental liability, storage and disposal costs).
• Improved workplace environment and health and safety (fewer lost person-days).
• Improved company image (marketing advantage).
• Improved process efficiencies, productivity and bottom line benefits.

General

• Involve all employees in your waste reduction efforts. Keep them informed of the goals and objectives of your program. Set up a staff waste reduction committee. Promote your 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) initiatives to your patients.
• Implement a "first-in, first-out" inventory system to use oldest stock first, particularly for products with a limited shelf life.
• Try to set up a purchasing system that allows all doctors’/dentists' offices in a building to buy "common" materials in bulk (e.g. alcohol, cotton swabs, tongue depressors, etc.)
• Install a computerized thermostat(s) to reduce energy costs. Turn off all lights and equipment, when not in use.
• Replace incandescent light bulbs with energy efficient halogen or fluorescent versions.
• Encourage the purchase and use of "environmentally friendly" reusable or recyclable materials and packaging and/or products that contain recycled content.
• Segregate non-hazardous (e.g. x-ray developer, general garbage) wastes from hazardous wastes (spent fixer, amalgam waste) to reduce the overall quantity of hazardous waste, to ensure proper disposal of hazardous waste, and to improve the recyclability of these wastes.
• Store waste sharps (needles, scalpels, etc.) in red color-coded puncture-proof biomedical waste container.
• Biomedical wastes (swabs or dressings saturated or dripping with blood) should be red-bagged and disposed through a certified infectious waste carrier.
• Install water saving devices wherever feasible (x-ray processors which use reduced volumes of wash water).
• Dispose of unused pharmaceuticals through certified carrier.
• Dispose of chairside and secondary evacuation filters through certified carrier.
• If filters are cleaned and reused amalgam should be recovered from filters and disposed through certified carrier.
• React small amounts of elemental mercury with alloy powder to convert to amalgam, which can be recycled.
• Concentrated disinfectants, sterilants or cleaners should never be discharged to sewer.
• Train employees in spill prevention and clean up. Special care should be taken with mercury spills. For small spills, mercury droplets can be aspirated with a bulb aspirator or plastic syringe or picked up with adhesive tape. X-ray fixer or "Merconvap" will suppress mercury vapors. An ordinary vacuum cleaner should never be used to clean up mercury spills - commercial mercury spill kits are available.

Reduce

• Be creative! For example, offer old equipment and off-spec. materials to schools or charitable organizations; donate old denture models to schools to educate students on oral health techniques; and give used wax, old plaster and tools to artists, craft classes, or students training in dentistry/medicine.
• Old grinding wheels can be used by jewelers or broken down and used as filler in the manufacture of automotive brake pads.
• Replace disposable products (paper bibs, gowns, table covers, towels etc.) with reusable (cloth/textile) alternatives. Contract a linen and laundry supply service to clean and supply these items.
• Use rechargeable batteries in equipment rather than disposable.
• Encourage staff to bring "litterless" lunches.
• Maintain patient records on computer disk.
• Work with suppliers to cut down on excess packaging or use reusable packaging.
• Mix only as much amalgam as necessary for a given restoration, to reduce scrap amalgam waste.
• Use dry heat or autoclave to sterilize instruments that are not heat sensitive.
• Use pre-capsulated amalgam.
• Consider a dry vacuum system over a water ring pump or a water ring pump with a water-recycling feature.

Reuse

• Reuse scrap paper, envelopes, etc. for notes, messages and draft work.
• Reuse plastic film mounts, sterilization plastic, paper bags and cardboard boxes.
• Encourage proper handling of these and all other materials/equipment to help prolong their life.
• Use refillable pens, pencils, and tape dispensers.
• Bring magazines from home for customers to read. Give old magazines to organizations or friends. Also, you may want to exchange your magazines with those in the hairdresser’s down the hall.
• Use shredded patient records as packing materials.
• Utilize tools and hygiene products made of durable materials that can be sterilized and reused. For example, purchase durable plastic or metal suction tips that can be sterilized.
• Supply reusable mugs for coffee or encourage staff to bring their own. Use reusable coffee filters or purchase a coffee maker with a built-in filter or switch to unbleached filters.

Recycle

• Segregate all waste materials to minimize contamination and to increase their recycling potential.
• Participate in your building’s recycling program or encourage the development of a program for solid non-hazardous wastes including fine paper, cardboard, plastics and container glass.
• Where feasible return unused wax and plaster to supplier for re-refining.
• Install silver recovery units to recover silver from waste x-ray fixer – recycle silver.
• Use a fixer and developer chemical recovery x-ray processor – recycle chemistry.
• Where facilities exist, collect and recycle lead foil x-ray film packets or otherwise dispose through certified carrier.
• Where facilities exist, recycle recovered amalgam waste.
• Recycle computer and photocopier toner cartridges.

More Information

Salt Lake Valley Health Department
(385) 468-3862

 

Local Sewer Districts

Salt Lake City Public Utilities
(801) 483-6770

Salt Lake City Suburban #2
(801) 255-7321

So Salt Lake Water
(801) 483-6014

Magna Water
(801) 250-2118

Granger Hunter Improvement
(801) 968-3551

Salt Lake Suburban
(801) 262-2907

Murray City
(801) 264-2695

Taylorsville-Bennion
(801) 968-9081

Kearns
(801) 968-1011

West Jordan
(801) 561-2352

Midvale
(801) 264-2652

Salt Lake Co Dist #1
(801) 571-1166

Salt Lake Co Dist #3
(801) 943-7671

Sandy
(801) 561-7662