Case Study
Baptist Health South Florida
Baptist Health South Florida is the largest not-for-profit healthcare organization in the South East Florida region. The Affiliate of Baptist Health South Florida, South Miami Hospital, is a 467 bed facility that provides a wide range of services, including award winning maternity services, robotic surgery, cardiovascular services and a wide range of outpatient services. The hospital has been recognized as a Magnet Hospital for Nursing Excellence and recently was the recipient of the Florida Governor’s Sterling Award for quality.
Results
Challenge
The hospital generated over 20% of it’s waste material as regulated medical waste, driving up costs and labor. The goal was to reduce the Regulated Medical Waste to under 10% of the total waste stream. Clinical staff was already under significant pressures with Magnet Certification and other policy and procedure changes.
Solution
The hospital brought in Antos Environmental who assessed the facility, identified the areas that needed education. Antos provided the processes, education, and container layout house-wide that facilitated a reduction in red bag waste to 12% of the total waste stream within the first year.
Challenge
There was no visible recycling. The hospital had no room in the back staging area to house any type of containers for recycling. There was an employee with a pickup truck that came to pick up the cardboard. The process was unreliable.
Solution
Once the red bag waste was reduced Antos was able to identify where containers in the trash staging area could be eliminated and moved. This made enough room for the recycling collection containers. Antos then proceeded to implement house-wide recycling.
Antos provided all the education, handouts, and container layout.
Challenge
Communicating the importance of “proper waste management” was difficult for the hospital to do internally. Education Initiatives of other topics, clinically driven, were abundant.
Solution
South Miami Hospital contracted with Antos Environmental for a three year period (2007 to 2010). The results were so outstanding that contract was brought to rest of the system and the relationship continues today. The organization has saved over $400,000 on waste disposal costs.