Our sustainability efforts align with our strategic plan and The Ohio State University’s resource stewardship goals (seen here). The progress of sustainability initiatives at the medical center towards our ambitious long-term goals is extraordinary due to the commitment of our institution and our people. Hospitals produce an average of 29 pounds of waste per patient stay. Health care’s complex waste stream is also expensive, with regulated medical waste costing 10 times as much as solid waste. The medical center is committed to first preventing waste upstream and managing it appropriately through landfill diversion, recycling, composting and ensuring items end up in the correct waste stream. According to Practice Greenhealth, operating rooms drive up to 60% of a hospital’s revenue while producing more than 30% of a facility’s waste and two-thirds of its regulated medical waste and consuming nearly three to six times more energy per square foot than anywhere else in the facility. The Ohio State Wexner Medical Center formed a Greening the OR task force to look at best practices and implement new procedures to improve efficiency and reduce waste.