"One Man's Waste is Another Man's Treasure"

It’s finally getting warm and it is that time of the year for getting rid of old junk and cleaning up for spring, but this month, I am going to give a tip for those of us who work in a hospital or surgery center, on cleaning up something different. Blue wrap! Blue wrap plays a crucial role in maintaining the sterility of surgical instruments prior to use in operating rooms. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates it accounts for 19 percent of all operating room waste and it’s used just once in hospitals every day! If your facility is not recycling, or upcycling blue wrap, it ends up in the landfill. This year we decided to rescue our blue wrap and turn it over to students who came up with some amazing ideas on how to repurpose this material. Dresses and totes, a fully functional umbrella since the wrap is waterproof, sleeping bags, stuffed animals and even rain ponchos. These were all well thought out ideas and the right step in helping clean up waste in our environment.