Hospitals and other healthcare facilities in Dubai, UAE could save millions of dollars through efficient energy, water and waste management practices, a top official said.

Markus Oberlin, CEO of multi-award winning UAE-based FM solutions provider Farnek, was speaking at the Green Hospital Symposium, organised and hosted by the Saudi German Hospital in Dubai.

“Essentially hospitals are buildings that have been designed to provide healthcare facilities and services. However, the buildings operate like any other, especially in terms of facilities management, albeit with specialist health and safety, cleaning and waste management,” said Oberlin.

In general hospitals need to be cleaned according to four major risk bands, which would cover very high to low risk areas, for example - intensive care, general ward, rehabilitation and administration respectively.

Energy savings in hospitals can be made through the reduction in carbon emissions – in many cases electricity bills can be slashed by 15 per cent with the implementation and monitoring of A/C modules, therefore becoming more cost efficient.

“Put that into cold hard cash – following a survey we conducted after the last Dewa tariff increase, a city hotel in Dubai of around 35,000 sq m today, would have an annual electricity bill of well over Dh5.2 million ($1.4 million). Therefore, energy savings alone could be worth as much as Dh750,000 per annum,” said Oberlin.

Another vital area is medical waste, he pointed out.

Hospitals, clinics and pharmacies in Dubai produce about six tonnes of medical waste every day, or 120 tonnes per month. Research by Johns Hopkins Medicine highlighted the multi-million dollar savings, hospitals can make by incorporating sustainable practices such as reducing waste.

The UAE’s waste management initiatives have been grabbing the headlines in recent years. Dubai for example has set a target of zero landfill waste by 2030, which is challenging, especially when you consider that in 2013 Dubai sent 2.6 million tonnes of waste to landfill of which an estimated 15-25 per cent was medical-related waste such as glass and laboratory equipment.

Dubai Municipality is also contemplating increasing its landfill fees, currently it charges Dh10 per truckload of waste – by comparison Abu Dhabi already charges Dh225 per tonne, adding even more expense to inefficient waste management operations. Moreover, due to the HSE issues surrounding medical waste, hospitals can be fined as much as Dh200,000 for failing to handle and segregate their waste prior to collection.

By outsourcing waste management, hospitals in the UAE can let expert facility managers take on the responsibility for optimising waste segregation and promoting a reduce, reuse and recycle philosophy to ultimately cut down the overall amount of waste generated, as well as ensuring hazardous waste is treated responsibly.

“Our operational audit team, highlight the areas where improvements can be made to essentially reduce the volume of waste generated that would ordinarily go to landfill. We also offer advice on responsible disposing and how to segregate waste efficiently, maximising the amount of cash rebates available from the companies that pick-up and dispose of waste,” added Oberlin. – TradeArabia News Service