Bread tags for wheelchairs is an initiative taking place at St George Hospital (SGH), aimed to encourage the separation of waste.
The initiative contributes to the overall aim to completely eliminate desk rubbish bins at St George Hospital, so that staff are forced to separate all of their waste.
Bread tags are recycled to fund wheelchairs in South Africa.
Aims
- Reduce landfill
- Encourage separation of waste
- Help people less fortunate.
Benefits
- Provision of wheelchairs to people who are usually unable to afford one, through the recycling of a product (bread tags) that would usually go to landfill.
- Encourages waste separation.
- Reduces rubbish going to landfill.
Background
A number of staff at SGH are incredibly focussed on sustainability. They increasingly identify opportunities throughout their work day to promote environmentally sustainable initiatives.
A registered nurse at St George Hospital discovered this initiative through ‘War on Waste Sutherland’, which operates a small business in everything sustainable and frequents local markets. Two main contacts within the hospital collect and deliver the bread tags to War on Waste who are located nearby. War on Waste then ships these bread tags to the companies recycling these products.
Implementation
- St George Hospital Staff Forum on 26 June 2019: A presentation about this initiative was made and emails to all staff were also communicated.
- This was followed by clear identification of staff who will collect items.
- Regular communication and reminder emails to staff.
- Posters in appropriate locations i.e. tea rooms.
Status
Sustained – the project has been implemented and sustained in standard business.
Dates
Started July 2019
Implementation site
St George Hospital
Partnerships
- War on Waste Sutherland
- Bread Tags for Wheelchairs
Results
- Around 75 wheelchairs are provided annually.
- Around 500 kilograms of bread tags funds between two to three wheelchairs.
- Nearly 2 kilograms of bread tags have been collected since July 2019 (at the time of writing in December 2019).
Lessons learnt
- Always ensure provision of collection containers in work kitchens.
- Clearly communicate collection details via staff wide emails.
References
- Bread Tags for Wheelchairs. Aussie bread tags for wheelchairs FAQ
- Facebook: Aussie bread tags for wheelchairs
Contact
Gillian Fury
Registered Nurse, St George Hospital
South Eastern Sydney Local Health District
Phone: 02 9113 4223
gillian.fury@health.nsw.gov.au
