BOSTON — Cary Medical Center was among three organizations and individuals in Maine who were honored on June 26 at the 2013 Environmental Merit Awards ceremony of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Cary was among 28 recipients across New England recognized for their significant contributions to environmental awareness and problem-solving.
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| Contributed Photo From left, Curt Spalding, EPA New England regional administrator; Lisa Prescott, Cary Medical Center laboratory technician; Bill Flagg, Cary director of community relations and development; Patricia Aho, Maine Department of Environmental Protection commissioner; and Ira Leighton, EPA New England deputy administrator, were present when Cary Medical Center won an award for their sharps disposal program during the 2013 Environmental Merit Awards in Boston on June 26. |
The merit awards allow the EPA to recognize individuals and groups whose work has protected or improved their region’s environment in distinct ways. Given out by the EPA annually since 1970, the merit awards honor individuals and groups who have shown particular ingenuity and commitment in their efforts.
“The people, communities and businesses being recognized today are leaders in helping create a cleaner environment and healthier communities across New England,” said Curt Spalding, regional administrator of EPA New England.
The Environmental Merit Awards, which are given to people who have already taken action, are awarded in the categories of individual; business, including professional organizations; local, state or federal government; and environmental, community, academia or non-profit organization. Also, each year the EPA presents lifetime achievement awards for individuals.
Cary won the Environmental, Community, Academia & Non-profit Organizations Environmental Merit Award for their medical waste disposal program.
In 2010 a medical technologist at Cary Medical Center saw piles of sharps, or needles, collected in the apartment of an elderly woman with a diabetic cat. Motivated to research the issue of sharps disposal, Lisa Prescott approached colleagues and hospital administration with ideas on community education and disposal options. This led to the Cary Committee for Community Needle Collection and ultimately a successful sharps disposal program.
Less than three years later, Aroostook County, which has one of Maine’s highest levels of diabetes, has a working disposal system to protect citizens from hazards associated with used medical sharps.
The Cary Medical Center Safe Sharps Disposal Program began in 2011. A drop-off sharps disposal kiosk was set up in the Caribou police station. A second kiosk was added in Presque Isle soon after, and in 2012, with funding from the state, kiosks were installed into four other local police stations.
State law allows medical sharps in hard plastic containers in household trash, but the Cary program offers a separate disposal system. This educates the public on the dangers of sharps and protects solid waste personnel. It also encourages residents to dispose of sharps if they worry about safety issues in regular disposal.
A year after the first kiosk in Caribou and only five months after the Presque Isle kiosk, more than two tons of sharps had been collected at just those two sites. This number is expected to grow exponentially.
