CircleHealth

Background

As 6 % of the Danish greenhouse gas emissions are directly related to the healthcare sector, there are yet-to-be-implemented organized efforts on circular public procurement, design criteria, etc., and there are immense potential for a national sustainable impact.

Description and aim

The overall mission for the CircleHealth project is to first map the flows of plastics and textiles in the Danish hospital sector, to understand how we can minimize resource use, waste, and CO2 emissions while sustaining the current healthcare standards.

With partners representing every step of the entire value chain, we consider everything from the design of products, use patterns, and procurement practice to better utilization of end-of-life materials. The goal for CircleHealth is to work as close to and with the people at the hospitals as possible so that the solutions we find will be meaningful and implementable right away.

The job so far

Currently, we are closing in on specific products of interest that we will focus on going forward across the value chain at the selected hospitals in the three participating Danish Regions. Furthermore, a mass flow analysis (MFA) will soon be presented highlighting the flow of plastic through a typical Danish hospital.

Currently, best practice circular procurement for textiles and plastic in the Nordic healthcare sector will reveal and inform particular procurement criteria, procedures, and strategies that we will present in an elaborate working paper at a later point in the project.
 

To see more information about the circular economy partnerships under Trace go to www.trace.dk 

If you want to get in touch about this project please send an email to Nikoline Oturai, nbango@ruc.dk