At Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH) and Madras Medical College (MMC), plastic bottles collected from the campus are now part of three vertical gardens.
The Government Kilpauk Medical College (KMC) Hospital, on its part, distributed 2,000 cloth bags to the public, doctors and staff to do away with plastic carry bags.
Employing alternatives
A number of hospitals in the city have put in place measures to do away with the use of plastic on their campuses. Canteens and eateries that generated majority of the plastic waste on government hospital campuses now use stainless steel plates and tumblers, banana leaves, mantharai leaves, areca nut leaf plates and wooden spoons.
R. Jayanthi, dean, RGGGH and MMC, said they have achieved 90% compliance on campus. “We have ensured that no plastic is used by us on the campus. There are five to six eateries and we have given instructions to stop using plastic in any form. Alternatives have been put in place, and we ensure that compliance continues by way of periodic inspections,” she said.
Students help out
Students of MMC’s ECOCLUB, through an initiative called ‘Plogging - Jogging with picking up trash’ collected plastic waste on campus. They set up three vertical gardens using the plastic bottles that were collected. “We are phasing out plastic bottles, and are trying to install reverse osmosis plant in every department so that jugs could be used,” she added.
Similar efforts have been put in place at KMC. Its dean, P. Vasanthamani, said they were focussing on creating awareness among the public against the use of plastic. “We are planning to give slips to patients, who are getting admitted. These slips will contain a list of things that they could bring from home for personal use. This includes tiffin boxes and water bottles,” she said. There are plans to distribute more cloth bags on campus.
S. Ponnambala Namasivayam, dean, Government Stanley Medical College Hospital, said the three canteens on the premises no longer use plastic bags, cups and sachets.
“The attenders of patients continue to bring plastic bags. We are creating awareness among them, and tell them not to use plastic during regular hospital rounds,” he said.
Sameer Mehta, vice-chairman, Dr. Mehta’s Hospitals, said, “It is challenging, but we have made a good start. We have substituted plastic bags with cloth bags at multiple places in the hospital such as the pharmacy, laboratory and when issuing the discharge summary to persons.”
