Suzy Clare Moody

When we think of sustainability in healthcare, our uniforms are probably not the first thing that springs to mind. Most of us wear uniform, whether dresses, tunics and trousers, or scrubs. Take a moment to consider that a single acute hospital trust can issue over 19,000 items of uniforms in a year, and multiply that up for how many trusts and other providers there are in the UK. It’s quite mind-blowing. There are several ways in which our uniforms impact on sustainability.

A clean hospital is a cornerstone for sustainable health care because a clean environment reduces the rates of healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs), which are associated with longer hospital stays, increased use of personal protective equipment (PPE), more expensive treatment with greater risk of serious side-effects, higher acuity care, poorer surviving patient outcomes and higher mortality rates (De Angelis et al, 2010; Kritsotakis et al, 2017; Guest et al, 2019).