City Fertility’s Sustainability Program

Sustainable Steps: Our guide to supporting patients to reduce, reuse & recycle

City Fertility is on a mission to reduce the environmental footprint of IVF treatment in Australia. To make practical changes across everything we do, we are collaborating with:

• Our patients
• Our people – fertility specialists, nurses, patient services and support staff
• Pharmaceutical brands and pharmacy services
• Recycling companies and clinical services

Our priorities:

• Provide our patients with up-to-date information about how to reuse, reduce, recycle and dispose of IVF medication and packaging
• Reduce and phase out unnecessary single-use plastic in our clinics
  • Phase out single-use foot covers for patients
  • Remove single-use plastic water bottles from our waiting areas
• Divert recyclable materials from landfills by increasing recycling capability across our sites
  • Introduce new recycling services
  • Recycle soft plastic from medical equipment

This is just the start of a continuous improvement process that aligns with our sustainability action plan.

How are we minimising our environmental impact?

We are collaborating with pharmaceutical brands, pharmacy services, and recycling partners to minimise the environmental impact of IVF on everything we do at City Fertility.

Medication cooler bag

You will receive one or two cooler bags and ice packs to cool the IVF medication. The bag is handy for reuse; however, we understand some patients may choose not to reuse this bag. If your cooler bag has had little use (a quick car ride home) and you would like to bring it back, we will gladly give it another home. We are currently collecting the bags for FareShare, a charity providing meals to people in need. Learn more about their important work here: https://www.fareshare.net.au

Blister pack recycling

Pharmacycle is Australia’s first and only end to end recycling program for household and commercial medicinal blister pack waste. You can find your nearest drop-off location here: www.pharmacycle.com.au/find-a-location

Safe Sharps Container Disposal

Many of the medications used in IVF require subcutaneous injection. It is essential to dispose of these appropriately so they do not become a health and safety risk. Bring your sealed sharps into the clinic for disposal or at the collection points provided by guild.org.au.

A patient-led program

In 2023, Amy Cobb, a Brisbane-based City Fertility patient and sustainability consultant, joined the City Fertility team to investigate and integrate new systems and initiatives across our operations.

“As a first-time IVF client, I found myself wondering what to do with the plastic, paper and surplus supplies from my treatment. While the emotional roller-coaster of IVF was more than enough to handle, I still felt I could be doing something better with the waste I was generating. Working with City Fertility to achieve practical sustainability goals is incredibly rewarding. It’s really exciting to be collaborating with stakeholders up and down the supply chain; from the big pharmaceutical companies who make the medications I used, to the recycling industry, which is working hard to transform materials into new products.”

Quick environmental facts

• Plastics can account for up to a third of a hospital’s general waste 1.
• According to the Australian Government, healthcare product waste is increasing. Almost 85 per cent of healthcare product waste is non-hazardous and comparable to domestic waste. Plastics in this waste stream have demonstratable sustainable end-of-life pathways 2.
• Australia’s healthcare sector is one of the largest emitters per capita, with an estimated 35.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions annually, equating to seven per cent of Australia’s total emissions 3, 4.

References

1. https://circularaustralia.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/NSW-Circular_Plastics-in-Healthcare-Report_-Case-for-Circularity.pdf
2. https://www.dcceew.gov.au/environment/protection/waste/product-stewardship/ministerspriority-list-23-24#plastics-in-healthcare-products-in-hospitals
3. https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/healthcare-has-a-waste-problem-but-we-can-achieve-net-zero
4. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-5196(17)30180-8/fulltext