Hospira Slices into Plastic Medical Waste with New IV Bags

Sign up for daily news updates from CleanTechnica on email. Or follow us on Google News!

Hospira has announced a new green improvement to its VisIV

I.V. equipment dots the landscape of countless movies and TV shows like E.R., House, and Grey’s Anatomy, so it’s no suprise that the ubiquitous little baggies account for a sizeable chunk of plastic medical waste from U.S. hospitals.  Now a company called Hospira, Inc. has come up with a new kind of I.V. container that could cut about 20 million pounds of that waste annually.

The company’s basic innovation is simple: its VisIV “green IV” containers are made from a multilayer plastic film that eliminates the disposable wrapper required to protect conventional IV containers from moisture.  The first generation of VisIV products was introduced in 2006 and was quickly adopted by almost 25% of U.S. hospitals, and the company has just announced a new, even more sustainable tweak to its formula.

Chip in a few dollars a month to help support independent cleantech coverage that helps to accelerate the cleantech revolution!

An Even More Sustainable Green I.V. Bag

The latest improvement to Hospira’s VisIV container is the use of a more recycling-friendly formula in its 50, 100, and 250 mL sized containers.  The new containers consist of a two-layer polyolefin film, using just one type of plastic.  Polyolefin is a relatively new class of materials that lends itself to molded flexible foam products such as the familiar Crocs.

A Safer Green I.V. Bag

On top of its contribution toward a more sustainable waste stream from hospitals, VisIV is also made without DEHP, a plasticiser which belongs to the now-notorious phthalates group.  It is (or was) commonly used in medical devices but groups such as the American Academey of Pediatrics are now advising DEHP-free products.  VisIV is also made without polyvinyl chloride (PVC), another common plastic that has fallen into disfavor.  With the medical industry lining up behind safer plastics, it would seem that the days are numbered for the use of harmful plastics in many other common products, including plastic shower curtains and even rubber duckies.

Image: Plastic medical equipment by Mandroid on flickr.com.

Proper IV usage training is available through the medical assistant program at Sanford Brown.


Have a tip for CleanTechnica? Want to advertise? Want to suggest a guest for our CleanTech Talk podcast? Contact us here.

Latest CleanTechnica TV Video


Advertisement
 
CleanTechnica uses affiliate links. See our policy here.

Tina Casey

Tina specializes in advanced energy technology, military sustainability, emerging materials, biofuels, ESG and related policy and political matters. Views expressed are her own. Follow her on LinkedIn, Threads, or Bluesky.

Tina Casey has 3275 posts and counting. See all posts by Tina Casey