Pennsylvania Businesses

RECYCLE!

Thomas Jefferson
University Hospital

Recycling Operation Saves Hospital $150,000 a Year

Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, in the heart of Philadelphia, is a city within a city. With 4,300 employees, the 620-bed hospital covers 1.5 million square feet in four buildings and generates massive amounts of recyclable waste. To control its waste generation and costs, TJU launched recycling in April 1990, ahead of the recycling law.

That proactive approach has reaped significant benefits: it saves roughly $150,000 a year in disposal costs. Jefferson recycles almost 500,000 pounds of mixed office paper and 547,000 pounds of corrugated cardboard annually; over 10,000 pounds of steel cans; 139,000 pounds of glass and plastic; and 28,000 pounds of aluminum cans. In 1994, the hospital recycled 33,000 pounds of textiles into rags and even recycled x-ray film and kitchen grease.

Mary Galphin is one of the
many hospital employees
who make Jefferson's
recycling so effective.

The hospital manages this mountain of recyclables by baling its cardboard and making daily shipments with its own trucks to the recycling center. No additional staff or vehicles were required, said Ed Barr, manager of Jefferson Hospital's Support Services, who oversees the operation.

Carelift International

Thomas Jefferson University and the Hospital have tapped another source through which they can channel equipment and supplies for reuse and recycling. For the past three years, Jefferson has been donating medical materials to Carelift International, an organization that matches and airlifts excess medical equipment and supplies to hospitals and medical organizations around the world.

Through Carelift, Jefferson has donated an entire dental clinic and a fully operational x-ray room, both made available as the result of consolidating operations. Jefferson's donations of equipment and supplies,which include unused surgical supplies, beds and cribs, have found grateful recipients as far away as China, South Africa, the Republic of Georgia and Europe.

"This is functioning equipment and supplies we were previously paying someone to dispose of," said William Wardle, vice president for Materials Management.

"We are pleased that others are able to use it."

For more information, contact Carelift International, 610 617-0995.

Thomas Jefferson University Homepage