• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Ascent Healthcare Solutions Receives Hospitals for a Healthy Environment (H2E) ''Champions for Change'' Award

Posted on: Tuesday, 8 May 2007, 09:00 CDT

Ascent Healthcare Solutions, the leading independent third-party reprocessor of single-use medical devices, announced today that it has received a 2007 "Champions for Change" award from Hospitals for a Healthy Environment (H2E). The award recognizes leadership in actively promoting awareness of environmental stewardship in the healthcare sector. H2E is a non-profit organization that educates healthcare professionals about pollution-prevention opportunities and rewards best practices in environmental sustainability.

The only medical device reprocessor receiving this award, Ascent was selected from among 130 entrants evaluated by 30 reviewers. Ascent was honored for its environmental initiatives and for helping its hospital and surgery center customers improve their environmental performance. Ascent will accept the award on May 14th at the H2E Environmental Excellence Summit in Minneapolis, Minn.

Since the company's inception, Ascent's customers have safely reprocessed in excess of 50 million medical devices, eliminating more than 10,000 tons from local landfills and saving its customers more than $500 million from their medical device supply costs through reprocessing and recycling medical products.

"Ascent Healthcare Solutions is at the forefront of a fundamental shift in the healthcare industry toward the proactive improvement of public health," said Laura Brannen, director of the H2E program. "In driving the sector's use of healthier and more responsible products and practices, they are making it easier than ever for facilities to operate in a way that protects the health of patients, workers, communities and our global environment. We commend Ascent for their contribution to this visionary work that benefits us all."

Ascent's unique Advantage™ program provides hospitals with a one-step, easy-to-use collection system that promotes device reprocessing and recycling and dramatically reduces the use of disposable sharps containers and their contents in rapidly filling landfills. Additionally, the company has pioneered an innovative disinfection technology for its own collection containers that dramatically decreases water consumption and eliminates environmentally harmful cleaning agents.

Additional environmental initiatives include:

Eliminating 1,014 tons of medical waste through recycling and reprocessing in and helping its customers save more than $1.2 million in medical waste stream disposal costs in 2006.

Proactively educating customers and prospects on the value of converting from disposable to reusable sharps containers that potentially could eliminate 15 to 25 percent of medical waste from landfills.

Providing customers with waste minimization reports that track the reduction in medical waste generated through reprocessing and recycling with Ascent.

Adding the H2E initiative and environmental stewardship to the company's accredited continuing education units (CEU) program for customers.

"We are proud to receive this award that recognizes our strong commitment to being an industry leader and pioneer in corporate environmental responsibility and to helping our hospital partners achieve their goal of being good stewards of the environment," said Rick Ferreira, chief operation officer at Ascent Healthcare Solutions. "We continue to seek innovative ways to minimize medical waste and to strengthen our cornerstone conservation, reduction, reuse and recycling programs."

About Ascent Healthcare Solutions

Since its inception, Ascent Healthcare Solutions, the leading independent third-party reprocessor of single-use medical devices (SUDs), has reprocessed more than 50 million SUDs, saving its customers in excess of $500 million in supply expenses and eliminating over 10,000 tons from local landfills. Ascent's 1,700 hospital partners include most of the U.S. News and World Report "Honor Roll" hospitals. The company has agreements with all leading national group purchasing organizations as well as numerous nationally recognized hospital integrated delivery networks. For more information about Ascent Healthcare Solutions, visit www.ascenths.com.

About H2E

H2E is creating a national movement for environmental sustainability in health care. A non-profit organization jointly founded by the American Hospital Association, the US Environmental Protection Agency, Health Care Without Harm and the American Nurses Association, H2E educates health care professionals about pollution prevention opportunities, rewards the sector's best performers, and provides a wealth of practical tools and resources to facilitate the industry's movement toward environmental sustainability. www.h2e-online.org

Source: Business Wire

More News in this Category