Environmental considerations in the selection of isolation gowns: A life cycle assessment of reusable and disposable alternatives
Environmental considerations in the selection of isolation gowns: A life cycle assessment of reusable and disposable alternatives
复制标题
DOI：
10.1016/j.ajic.2018.02.002
复制
发表时间：
2018-08-01
影响因子：
4.9
通讯作者：
Griffing, Evan
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Vozzola, Eric;Overcash, Michael;Griffing, Evan
背景资料：隔离衣通过保护医护人员、访客和患者免受微生物和体液的传播，在感染控制中发挥着关键作用。是否使用可重复使用或一次性服装系统的决定是一个基于可持续性，屏障有效性，成本和舒适度等因素的选择过程。环境可持续性越来越多地被用于决策过程。生命周期评估是最全面和广泛使用的工具，用于评估环境performance.Methods：市场代表性的可重复使用和一次性隔离袍系统的环境影响进行了比较，使用标准的生命周期评估程序。比较的基础是在医疗环境中使用的1,000件隔离衣。结果：在医疗机构，与一次性罩袍系统相比，可重复使用的罩袍系统显示出28%的能耗减少，30%的温室气体排放减少，41%的蓝水消耗减少，以及93%的固体废物产生减少。结论：与选择一次性服装系统相比，选择可重复使用的服装系统可以产生显著的环境效益。通过选择可重复使用的隔离衣，医疗机构可以将这些量化效益直接添加到其可持续性记分卡中。(C)2018感染控制和流行病学专业人员协会，Inc.爱思唯尔公司出版
Background: Isolation gowns serve a critical role in infection control by protecting healthcare workers, visitors, and patients from the transfer of microorganisms and body fluids. The decision of whether to use a reusable or disposable garment system is a selection process based on factors including sustainability, barrier effectiveness, cost, and comfort. Environmental sustainability is increasingly being used in the decision-making process. Life cycle assessment is the most comprehensive and widely used tool used to evaluate environmental performance.Methods: The environmental impacts of market-representative reusable and disposable isolation gown systems were compared using standard life cycle assessment procedures. The basis of comparison was 1,000 isolation gown uses in a healthcare setting. The scope included the manufacture, use, and end-of-life stages of the gown systems.Results: At the healthcare facility, compared to the disposable gown system, the reusable gown system showed a 28% reduction in energy consumption, a 30% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, a 41% reduction in blue water consumption, and a 93% reduction in solid waste generation.Conclusions: Selecting reusable garment systems may result in significant environmental benefits compared to selecting disposable garment systems. By selecting reusable isolation gowns, healthcare facilities can add these quantitative benefits directly to their sustainability scorecards. (C) 2018 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc.