Specifically, board members will assist the council in identifying high value needs and opportunities for action, share first-hand perspective and understanding of recycling barriers that exist within their facilities, and provide access to data, information and resources at the hospital level.

"As with any effort focused on solution development, voice of the customer input is critical," says Tod Christenson, director of HPRC. "We need to ensure that our agenda supports the needs of the hospitals. The insights from Kaiser Permanente and Stanford University Medical Center will be invaluable to HPRC's activities as we seek to improve recyclability of plastic products in healthcare."

"HPRC is the first collaborative supplier-led response to the environmental and operational challenges caused by the abundance of plastic in the hospital setting. Kaiser Permanente joined this effort to add both a customer and patient perspective towards the development of new industry approaches," says Rachael Baker, environmental supply chain manager of Kaiser Permanente.

"Stanford University Medical Center was already engaged in planning for single-stream recycling in our clinical setting when the opportunity to support HPRC as a Healthcare Facility Advisory Board Member was presented," said Krisanne Hanson, director of Sustainability for the Center, which includes Stanford Hospital & Clinics, Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, and the Stanford University School of Medicine. "It makes perfect sense to work together to improve knowledge and stewardship for all concerned."

HPRC is a private technical coalition of industry peers across healthcare, recycling and waste management industries seeking to improve recyclability of plastic products within healthcare.

Source: HPRC