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29th August 2024

What are we trying to accomplish?

1. Reduce procurement and waste costs.

Cost of couch roll throughout DCHS:

  • 22/23 - £18,163.57
  • 23/24 - £22,093.08

2. Reduce waste, conserve resources and landfill space, save energy and reduce emissions.

  • In 2022-2023 DCHS used 403.45 miles of couch roll. This is the equivalent of traveling from DCHS headquarters at Ash Green Learning Disability Centre to Londonderry via the Giant’s Causeway.
  • In 2023-2024 DCHS used 562 miles of couch roll. This is the equivalent of traveling from DCHS headquarters at Ash Green Learning Disability Centre to Malroy, France via Brussels and Luxemburg.

The IP&C team need our colleagues’ support to reduce the amount of couch roll we are using across the Trust. Couches should be cleaned between patients, regardless of whether they are covered or not. Couch covers don’t remove potential pathogens, they just cover them up.

What changes do we want to make?

To remove couch roll from examination couches where:

  • Patients are not having invasive procedures (i.e. gynaecological examinations)
  • Patients are not suspected or known to have an infection,
  • There is no risk of contamination with blood or bodily fluids
  • Patients do not need to be unclothed from the waist down.

To reduce the amount of couch roll used:

  • Where a patient is unclothed from the waist down - only cover the area of the couch where there is potential for contamination
  • For invasive procedures (i.e. gynaecological examinations), only cover the area of the couch where this is potential for contamination
  • Where patients are not suspected or known to have an infection, only cover the area of the couch where this is potential for contamination
  • Where there is no risk of contamination with blood or bodily fluids, only cover the area of the couch where this is potential for contamination.

What will we achieve by reducing the amount of couch roll used within the trust?

  • Projected cost savings - £12,218.67 per year
  • Projected reduction in waste – 380 miles less couch roll used per year.

The link below will take you to the risk assessment which will support you in making the decision to roll to not to roll.

Risk Assessment Flow Chart for the use of blue roll

Please help the Trust to reduce the amount of waste we send to landfill.