Hospital focuses on hazardous waste collection

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Program compliments the community-wide initiative by St. Croix County called the “Medication Disposal Program.”

Ensuring best practices for collection of hazardous waste used in the hospital is another example of how Hudson Hospital & Clinics is working to improve the health of patients, members and community and offering a sustainable and an eco-friendly environment.

Hospital program

The hospital and clinic recently contracted with a national vendor, Clean Harbors, to start a pharmaceutical and hazardous waste collection program. This program will only be collecting waste generated from the hospital. Clean Harbors is the leading provider of environmental, energy and industrial services throughout the U.S.

Products used in the health care industry, such as chemotherapy drugs, some pharmaceuticals, disinfectants and sterilants, can harm the environment and human health if they are not disposed of properly. Hudson Hospital Pharmacy has always incinerated expired medications, a best practice disposal method.

Starting Dec. 1, a new program for the collection of hospital generated medication waste began at Hudson. The medication hazardous waste collection black boxes were placed in medication rooms, soiled utility rooms, operating rooms, and pharmacy at Hudson Hospital & Clinics. At a recent Nursing Skills Fair, staff had the opportunity to review the process and proper procedures for the hospital generated pharmaceutical and hazardous waste collection.

“I look forward to this new program, as it’s one more step our hospital is taking to become sustainable now and into the future,” said Jerry Jennings, housekeeping manager at Hudson Hospital & Clinics.

Community program

“This new hospital medication waste program compliments the community-wide initiative by St. Croix County called the ‘Medication Disposal Program,’” said Jennings. The community program is a green initiative to provide a safe disposal option for old or unneeded prescription medications and over-the-counter medications including narcotics. This is offered at all police and sheriff stations in the county. Drop off can be done during regular operating hours of the police departments and the sheriff’s office is open 24 hours a day.

Remove all pills from their original containers and combine into a zip lock plastic bag. Other items like creams, inhalers, gels and liquids should remain in the original container but remove the patient name or label and place inside the plastic bag. The only items not accepted are sharps, oxygen tanks, nebulizers or radioactive cancer medications. Sharps can be dropped off at the Hudson Hospital & Clinics Emergency Center or pharmacy.

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