Hospitals waste more than $15 million in unused surgical supplies each year that could be used to treat the less privileged in developing countries, according to a study published in the World Journal of Surgery.

The study's authors started the Supporting Hospitals Abroad with Resources and Equipment (SHARE) program to collect clean and unused medical supplies at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore for donation to resource-poor hospitals.

According to their research, nearly 26,000 lbs. of supplies with an estimated value of more than $200,000 were recovered from the SHARE program between September 2010 and November 2013, which saved Johns Hopkins $1,297 in solid waste disposal expenses. Gauze, needleless disposal systems, disposable syringes and sutures were the most gathered supplies, but urinary catheters had the highest value — nearly $80,000 — of the items collected over the study period.

The researchers estimate that the 232 teaching hospitals the United States with at least 500 beds could recover nearly 2 million pounds of the most commonly discarded supplies, an overabundance of unused items that would help delivery care to patients in poorer countries who, according to the study, receive less than 5% of all surgery's performed worldwide.

Study author Richard Redett, MD, associate professor of plastic surgery at Johns Hopkins Medicine, says recovery programs are relatively easy to set up and maintain, but do require a dedicated core of volunteers.

"We ran the SHARE program for years with just 3 or 4 volunteers." he explains. "But we are much bigger now that we have expanded our collections to all of our ORs and many of our floors."

The study's findings indicate a significant recovery opportunity that can reduce environmental burden and benefit patient care globally, says Dr. Redett.

He adds, "Programs such as SHARE create global and local partnerships, opening avenues for research and clinical training among hospitals, physicians and nurses."

Daniel Cook