Premier healthcare alliance joins green certified electronics recycling initiative to further commitment to social responsibility
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
Alven Weil
alven_weil@premierinc.com
704.733.5797
e-Stewards® Recyclers are selected as e-waste management providers to support public health, environment
Charlotte, N.C. (April 15, 2010) - The Premier healthcare alliance announced today that it has joined a select group of companies and institutions known as e-Stewards® Enterprises, committed to using electronics recyclers that meet the world’s highest standards for responsible recycling.
In the last five years, Premier’s more than 1,200 employees have made major strides in its environmental performance policies and practices by recycling and disposing of more than 25 tons of outdated computer equipment from its corporate headquarters office in an environmentally safe manner. Responsible electronic waste management is seen by Premier as an essential aspect of its corporate commitment to social responsibility.
According to Gina Pugliese, RN, vice president of the Premier Safety Institute®, "Every year, tens of thousands of tons of computers, electronics, and medical devices become obsolete in the healthcare industry. There is an urgent need to ensure environmentally and socially responsible end-of-life options are available for disposal and recycling of all electronics to minimize the risk of toxic components to population health and the overall environment. We became an e-Stewards Enterprise to be assured our electronics are disposed of responsibly.”
Through the Premier Safety Institute and its publicly accessible Web site, Premier offers tools and resources to improve patient, worker and environmental safety with a popular section on computers and electronics to help hospitals with responsible purchasing and end-of-life options.
Today’s announcement coincides with the Basel Action Network’s (BAN) official launch of the e-Stewards Recyclers Certification and announcement of the first fully certified e-Stewards recyclers and e-Stewards accredited certifying bodies.
"Premier is demonstrating real environmental leadership by becoming an e-Stewards Enterprise,” said BAN’s Jim Puckett. "Committing to e-Stewards certification means their reused, refurbished or disposed electronics will always be managed in a way that protects the environment and the workforce, both here and overseas.”
The e-Stewards recycler certification is the world’s first global electronics accredited e-waste management program. It is the only electronics recycling certification supported by environmental groups such as the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Electronic TakeBack Coalition. The e-Stewards recycler certification has also attracted broad participation from the electronics recycling industry. Approximately 50 e-Stewards recyclers have already passed BAN’s review and are now committed to become certified in the next two years.
At the heart of the certification program is the e-Stewards Standard, created by BAN in partnership with leading electronics recyclers, certification industry experts, and occupational, health and safety specialists. It ensures that recyclers will never export hazardous e-wastes to developing countries; dump them in municipal landfills or incinerators; or use captive prison populations as labor. It also calls for strict protection and destruction of customer’s private data and occupational health criteria to prevent workers in recycling plants from being exposed to toxic dusts and fumes.
About the Premier healthcare alliance, 2006 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award
recipient
The Premier healthcare alliance is more
than 2,300 U.S. hospitals and 66,000-plus other healthcare sites working
together to improve healthcare quality and affordability. Owned by
not-for-profit hospitals, Premier maintains the nation's most comprehensive
repository of clinical, financial and outcomes information and operates a
leading healthcare purchasing network. A world leader in helping deliver
measurable improvements in care, Premier works with the Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services and the United Kingdom's National Health Service North West to
improve hospital performance. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Premier also has
offices in San Diego, Philadelphia and Washington. Follow Premier on
Twitter.