Five ways to manage disposable supplies in your surgery center

Marvella Thomas, RN, MSN, Sr. Clinical Consultant at Cardinal Health -

It’s officially spring, and that means it’s time for spring cleaning!

There’s something so gratifying that comes with getting rid of stuff that’s just been collecting dust on the shelves in the storage room. If you want to feel like you’ve really accomplished something – start with disposing supplies you no longer need. You’ll be instantly rewarded with new, clean shelf space! Here are five tips to help you get started.

  1. Move disposables to another facility
    Is there another facility in your group – or another surgery center in your area – that could benefit from the supplies? You may have an opportunity to sell them and recapture your original cost.
  2. Check with companies that buy obsolete medical supplies
    A quick online search may reveal several opportunities to sell your supplies and reinvest those funds back into patient care.
  3. Return products to the manufacturer
    If you can’t sell product, work with the manufacturer to buy them back or recommend someone who will, to free up more shelf space for products you do need.
  4. Discard expired products
    If the disposables have expired, don’t let them waste valuable space. Remove them right away; it’s not only a matter of efficiency, but patient safety as well.
  5. Throw it away
    If there are supplies you come across that you never use, and just aren’t worth the time and effort for what you’d get back (if anything), just throw it away. They won’t be worth more later and they’re costing you precious storage space now, so just let it go and move on.

I hope these tips are helpful when you have the time and inclination to do some spring cleaning. It’ll feel great to have a stock room full of supplies that you actually use! Check out more ways to cut waste by visiting cardinalhealth.com/surgerycenters.

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