Finding ways to make your dental practice more sustainable and greener can feel like a major challenge. But with the urgency to help curb our damaging footprint on the environment, the demand for more sustainable practices across all industries is louder – and more important – than ever. More and more small and large businesses are jumping on board with eco-friendly initiatives, and you should too. If you haven’t adopted green policies in your clinic yet, it’s easier than you may think. To help make your practice less harmful on the environment, here are 3 simple suggestions to help get you started.
Conserve Energy Wherever Possible
Going green doesn’t necessarily mean doing something elaborate. It’s often the simplest things that can make the biggest difference. This includes the use of energy. From the lights, to the computers and tech that are used on a daily and consistent basis – looking for ways to curb energy use at the clinic is a good first step. This could include switching out incandescent blubs for LED or CFL ones and ensuring that all computers or any special pieces of equipment, monitors, and x-rays machines are fully switched off and shut down before leaving.
Go Paperless
Though the idea may seem unpractical for a dentist’s office, it can be done! In fact, many dental clinics are now jumping on board with a paperless system, and their patients are loving it. If you stop to consider the amount of paper that gets used in the span of just one day, imagine what that equates to over the course of an entire year. That’s a lot waste! Sure, recycling is a helpful alternative, but it’s not a solution considering that only about 10% of paper gets recycled on average. Even if your clinic can’t commit to going 100% paperless, starting the process is a big step in the right direction. And your patients will thank you for it!
Switch to Reusable Items Wherever Possible
In addition to paper, the amount of waste that dental clinics produce on average is staggering. Any dentist or hygienist will admit to this. From the disposable cups and air/water syringes, to sponges, trays cover, and bibs. What’s more is a majority of this waste that’s produced isn’t disposed of properly which means biohazardous chemicals that are dangerous to our health are being released into our environment and waterways. With this in mind, think about how you can create a more waste-free clinic. Switching to reusable items such as bibs, cups, and even reusable metal suction tips in place of plastic, can help to prevent more waste from entering landfills and our environment.
Looking for a new dental clinic in Ottawa? Teal Umbrella offers a complete range of dental care services for you and your family. Hop onto our website to learn more about our team, services and how we strive to create a better clinic for our patients and the environment each and every day.
