July 2001

N.H. HOSPITALS FOR A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT:
DRIVERS WANTED!

Due to the ongoing interest expressed by New Hampshire hospitals in environmental improvement efforts such as mercury reduction, waste minimization, pollution prevention and environmentally preferable purchasing, the Foundation for Healthy Communities is pleased to announce the formation of the New Hampshire Hospitals for a Healthy Environment network.

The objective of the network is to provide you with the opportunity to learn and share information with other hospitals facing similar environmental concerns and challenges. The Foundation will be working closely with Health Care Without Harm, an international organization devoted to environmentally responsible health care and the N.H. Department of Environmental Services, to offer education, technical assistance and practical strategies you can use to reduce both the volume and toxicity of your waste. At the same time, we'll be striving to advance the goals of the Hospitals for a Healthy Environment (H2E) national initiative as outlined below:

Eliminate the use of mercury in health care.
Cut the total volume of waste by 50% by 2010.
Reduce persistent bioaccumulative toxins, (PBTs) such as dioxin.
Minimize chemical waste.

Initially, this work will be accomplished by:

1. An organizational meeting to get to know each other, share ideas and chart a course.
2. A listserv participants can use to ask questions, identify concerns and share information.
3. A series of meetings/workshops to provide training, share best practices, and address policy and implementation issues.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR FOR SEPTEMBER 13TH!

Plan to attend the N.H. Hospitals for a Healthy Environment kick-off meeting on Thursday, September 13th at the N.H. Hospital Association conference center in Concord. We'll meet from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. to network, identify common environmental challenges and chart a course for future action. Laura Brannen from Health Care Without Harm will be on hand to tell you more about her organization. Lunch will be provided. Look for a meeting agenda in the near future!

We hope that your hospital will be among those to help drive this very exciting environmental and community health initiative -- remember, it won't happen without committed individuals like you!

Contact Debbie Augustine at 225-0900 or daugustine@nhha.org with any questions, suggestions for topics for the first meeting or to be put on the N.H. Hospitals for a Healthy Environment mailing list.

AVH HELPS PUT 600 MERCURY THERMOMETERS OUT OF COMMISSION

On Saturday, June 2nd, dedicated members of the Androscoggin Valley Hospital (AVH) REACT team manned a station at the Androscoggin Valley Regional Refuse Disposal District's Hazardous Waste Day -- in the pouring rain. The Team, which included AVH CEO Don Saunders, handed out digital thermometers and general information about the detrimental health effects of mercury, in exchange for the mercury thermometers.

REACT (which stands for recycle, educate, awareness, conserve, teamwork) is a team committed to promoting recycling and reusing, reducing pollution, and practicing environmental standards within the hospital and local communities

A total of 606 mercury thermometers were collected from the district's households and ultimately taken out of the waste stream, while 248 of those were traded for digital thermometers. Both AVH and WalMart provided funds to purchase the digital thermometers.

"Reducing mercury in our community was only part of the success of this program," said Don Saunders. "The real benefit was the education about the dangers of mercury in our environment that was a product of the great publicity."

PROPOSED LEGISLATION GETS TOUGH ON DIOXIN

A bill has been proposed for the next legislative session that would ban the construction of new medical waste incinerators in New Hampshire and phase out the operation of existing ones by the end of 2010. The goal of this legislation is to substantially reduce dioxin emissions to the environment from the combustion of medical waste. To accomplish this, the bill would require a 75% reduction of PVC-containing materials in incinerated medical waste by January 1, 2006 -- whether it's burned in New Hampshire or not.

The New Hampshire Dioxin Reduction Strategy identifies medical waste as a leading source of dioxin emissions. Dioxin is a byproduct of incomplete combustion made when organic materials are burned with chlorine-containing wastes, including PVC plastics found in products such as I.V. bags, tubing, etc. In addition to medical waste incinerators, other sources of dioxin include backyard trash burning (recently banned by the N.H. Legislature) and certain chlorine bleaching processes for making white paper products.

Dioxin is also a persistent bioaccumulative toxin that accumulates in the food chain and can cause a number of adverse effects in humans including reproductive and developmental disorders, suppression of the immune system, and cancer.

NHHA will follow this bill closely as it makes its way through the legislature and keep you posted as to its progress. In the meantime, remember: if your waste is being incinerated -- your hospital could be contributing to these toxic emissions.

ENERGY WELL SPENT

Would you be interested in influencing the way the U.S. EPA creates the Next Generation of Web-based energy benchmarking for healthcare? Would you like the opportunity to be one of the first hospitals in the country to be recognized by the EPA for outstanding energy performance? Test drive ENERGY STAR's newest energy performance benchmark tool beginning August 13th! But first you will need to collect a limited amount of building and energy data before participating. Contact Reed Clark at reed.clark@epa.gov for more details.

THINK GLOBALLY, DONATE LOCALLY

The International Medical Equipment Collaborative (IMEC) is a non-profit organization that distributes medical equipment, supplies and support services to doctors, nurses and technologists working in clinics and orphanages in underserved locations worldwide. Located in Rollinsford, NH, they will pick up your hospital's used equipment. For more information, contact them at 740-4632 or imec1@juno.com. Or visit their Web site at www.imecamerica.org.

New Hampshire Hospital Association 125 Airport Road Concord, NH 03301
phone (603) 225-0900 • fax (603) 225-4346 • email: info@nhha.org

July 2001

N.H. HOSPITALS FOR A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT: DRIVERS WANTED!

N.H. HOSPITALS FOR A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT:
DRIVERS WANTED!