Sustainability
Towards security of supply, safety and sustainability
How can the medical devices sector move beyond ‘green washing’ and improve its sustainability credentials? Graeme Cameron, Dan Wilson and Rich Shaw answer some burning questions on the role of industry and NHS procurement in helping achieve Net Zero.
When NHS England set out its goal for Net Zero by 2045, this imperative put the entire supply chain on the same journey. Inevitably, suppliers were impacted through procurement and new requirements that had to be met. However, a positive aspect of this change was that it also provided those who were doing more in this area an opportunity to ‘score’ more positively, improving their chances of securing contracts. One early change was the introduction of a 10% weighting on social value and, more recently, the Evergreen Assessment. Together, they provide a broad view of the progress and initiatives a company is making in terms of sustainability. The devolved nations are looking to align with NHS England’s Net Zero targets. Similar requirements are being introduced by healthcare providers in Europe, with those further afield, such as the US, expected to follow in the near future. So, this isn’t a UK- specific trend; it’s a global shift. The majority of HealthTech companies will have already felt the shift and are in the process of building short- and long-term strategies around how they will respond. The NHS has identified that approximately 10%
of its emissions come from the medical devices it purchases. Although this is not an insignificant impact, it is the same as that from non-medical equipment and half the emissions associated with medicines and chemicals. Unlike consumer products, medical devices, their materials, and what happens to them post-use are all heavily regulated. While these regulations exist for many good reasons, they have not evolved to help manufacturers operate more sustainably. It’s a complex topic with many stakeholders involved, from regulatory bodies, manufacturers, procurement teams, and clinicians, right through to waste processing. Industry bodies such as the ABHI have been engaged with stakeholders to collaborate on where and how changes can be made. Over the last 30–40 years, there has been a significant shift towards single-use devices,
as well as helping to communicate members’ views back to the NHS and DHSC. There have been significant efforts to boost carbon literacy over the last few years, which have now progressed into support with carbon accounting and emissions reduction through decarbonising production. This is a journey the whole industry is on, and it’s a new topic for most organisations, many of which don’t have dedicated resources working on it. As a result, we are seeing more collaboration between companies and sharing ideas on how to respond.
largely in response to cross-contamination issues of the 1990s. However, an unintended consequence of this shift has been the substantial increase in waste, most of which is incinerated, causing more emissions and increased costs for healthcare providers. Many of the products used in a clinical setting
have evolved to be single use, but this is causing significant volumes of waste which, due to regulations, is usually incinerated, contributing to global warming. We are starting to see clinicians and procurement teams looking for more reusable devices, as they offer a 38%–56% reduction in emissions over the entire life cycle. Where re-use isn’t feasible, we will need to look at more sustainable materials as well as improved end-of-life treatment through decontamination and recycling.1,2
What is the medical device sector doing collectively? The ABHI has a very active sustainability working group. Collaboration is key in helping the whole sector move forward, and it’s these groups that are making this happen. They’re also doing an excellent job in keeping the sector informed about new requirements coming from the NHS,
How can the sector do better? Integrating sustainability into the overall business strategy is crucial. It needs to be more than just a tick-box exercise; it must become a core part of operations. This often requires a shift in mindset, which can be slow to achieve. For those who are embracing and incorporating sustainability, it’s important to share with peers why it’s important and how they’re doing it. For products currently in development,
there is now an opportunity to engineer them with sustainability in mind. This is something we’re beginning to see and hear about more frequently, but there’s likely much more happening behind the scenes. It can take years to bring a new device to
market, so it’s the ones being designed today that will help reduce emissions in the future. It’s still quite early days, but the requirement to report on emissions is starting to impact tier 1 and 2 suppliers. This follows the structure of the GHG protocol – it’s a domino effect. Current NHS requirements don’t yet include emissions from ‘Purchased Goods and Services,’ which is actually where we see 70%+ of emissions coming from. This category relies heavily on supplier engagement, which can be difficult to secure unless your business represents a large proportion of the supplier’s revenue. In the coming years, we will see the whole supply chain move forward as a result. Ensuring suppliers are making progress
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