Burden of Healthcare Waste for European Hospitals: Findings From an AI-Based Literature Research
Author(s)
Michela Canobbio, BSc, MEng1, Javier Gonzalez Durio, BPharm, MHEc, MRPharmS2, Els VAN HEREWEGEN, MLan3, Ciska Janssens-Böcker, MSc4.
1HEOR EMEA Leader, Becton Dickinson, Milano, Italy, 2BD, San Agustín del Guadalix, Spain, 3Becton Dickinson, Erembodegen, Netherlands, 4GenexAI, Newark, NJ, USA.
1HEOR EMEA Leader, Becton Dickinson, Milano, Italy, 2BD, San Agustín del Guadalix, Spain, 3Becton Dickinson, Erembodegen, Netherlands, 4GenexAI, Newark, NJ, USA.
OBJECTIVES: Healthcare Waste (HCW) has increased dramatically over the last 30 years, constituting 1-2% of total produced urban waste. 15% of the total amount of waste is hazardous materials, requiring specific management. A systematic literature review has been conducted to extract and assess HCW waste and its cost management in hospitals across 9 European countries.
METHODS: The literature review identified sources via manual search (diverse documents/languages) and targeted (PubMed) literature review. These were AI-processed through a vector database for advanced categorization and with an environmental metrics AI agent, all with rigorous human oversight (GenexAI).
RESULTS: 355 relevant sources were identified. The analysis of metrics through AI revealed big variations and heterogeneity of data across countries: medical waste ranged from 1.5 kg/bed/day in the UK to 4.2 kg/bed/day in Spain. Plastic packaging constitutes 18-20% of daily hospital waste in Denmark, up to 60% in a Norway study, while it is estimated that in France up to 170 tons of plastic waste is produced per year. Operating rooms are significant contributors to waste, generating 20-30% of total hospital waste in Germany, and up to 70% in a French study. In the Netherlands 1’500 tons of Co2 are produced from plastic alone in operating rooms, whereas a study in Spain demonstrated that orthopedic surgeries alone could produce an average of 7.3 kg of plastic waste per procedure. Annual overall waste management costs approximately €600 million in France, €300 million in Italy, and it exceeds £700 million in the UK. There are considerable differences in the costs of managing hazardous vs non-hazardous waste (approximately a 3:1 ratio)
CONCLUSIONS: The research led to two main conclusions: 1) waste management represents a considerable burden for hospitals, requiring specific reduction strategies, 2) studies present a high level of heterogeneity and huge variations of results, highlighting the need of measurement standardization.
METHODS: The literature review identified sources via manual search (diverse documents/languages) and targeted (PubMed) literature review. These were AI-processed through a vector database for advanced categorization and with an environmental metrics AI agent, all with rigorous human oversight (GenexAI).
RESULTS: 355 relevant sources were identified. The analysis of metrics through AI revealed big variations and heterogeneity of data across countries: medical waste ranged from 1.5 kg/bed/day in the UK to 4.2 kg/bed/day in Spain. Plastic packaging constitutes 18-20% of daily hospital waste in Denmark, up to 60% in a Norway study, while it is estimated that in France up to 170 tons of plastic waste is produced per year. Operating rooms are significant contributors to waste, generating 20-30% of total hospital waste in Germany, and up to 70% in a French study. In the Netherlands 1’500 tons of Co2 are produced from plastic alone in operating rooms, whereas a study in Spain demonstrated that orthopedic surgeries alone could produce an average of 7.3 kg of plastic waste per procedure. Annual overall waste management costs approximately €600 million in France, €300 million in Italy, and it exceeds £700 million in the UK. There are considerable differences in the costs of managing hazardous vs non-hazardous waste (approximately a 3:1 ratio)
CONCLUSIONS: The research led to two main conclusions: 1) waste management represents a considerable burden for hospitals, requiring specific reduction strategies, 2) studies present a high level of heterogeneity and huge variations of results, highlighting the need of measurement standardization.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2025-11, ISPOR Europe 2025, Glasgow, Scotland
Value in Health, Volume 28, Issue S2
Code
HSD17
Topic
Epidemiology & Public Health, Health Service Delivery & Process of Care, Medical Technologies
Disease
No Additional Disease & Conditions/Specialized Treatment Areas