Ten years ago, Medline created a Sustainability program with an aim toward conserving energy, limiting landfill waste, and providing programs and products to help our healthcare partners make a positive impact on the environment, all while reducing costs. This initial effort evolved into a comprehensive and successful Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program that also encompasses Global Health and Community Impact.
Our recently published 2021 CSR Report highlights how far we’ve come and where we’re going as a socially and environmentally conscious company. In 2021, Medline continued to invest in renewable energy, elevate clinical knowledge in low-resource countries, and address social determinants of health. The accomplishments that we’re especially proud of include:
- Reprocessing 6,344,304 medical instruments and devices through the ReNewal program to divert 1,095,793 pounds of waste from landfills, an amount equivalent to 39,137,130 water bottles.
- Continuing to invest in and prioritize solar energy. Since 2016, Medline has globally invested more than $34 million in renewable energy. Today, Medline’s portfolio includes 2,735,595 million square feet of solar rooftop space with over 60,000 solar panels.
- Launching a pilot program, in partnership with Volvo North America, to utilize and integrate a fully electric semitruck as part of Medline’s MedTrans delivery fleet.
Francesca Olivier
Medline Vice President, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)
- Receiving national recognition for Medline’s Sustainable Packaging Lab. In just one year, the cross-functional team effort resulted in a 455,000-pound reduction in packaging-related waste, and the program is on track to reach one million pounds of diverted waste by year-end 2022. For the program’s success, Medline received the 2021 Sustainability, Environmental Achievement and Leadership (SEAL) Business Sustainability Awardin the category of Environmental Initiatives.
- Launching our first-ever Employee Month of Service in November, encouraging and incentivizing the company’s nearly 30,000 employees to participate in organized volunteer activities.
- Working with international medical relief organizations to donate and ship 275 metric tons of medical supplies, valued at approximately $3.61 million, to various community and nonprofit healthcare organizations in 80 countries.
Solar panels at Medline’s Uxbridge, Massachusetts distribution center
We are extremely proud of these accomplishments which reflect the evolution, maturation and success of our CSR program and will serve as a strong foundation as we transition to a global Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) model. The work we’ve done to be a positive social and environmental steward has had a tangible impact on the health systems we partner with and the communities we serve. We are eager to adopt a broader, global and data-driven approach to our goals and standards, all in an effort to make healthcare more sustainable and equitable.
This will require deeper integration, coordination and transparency in our reporting structure across all company regions and divisions; a greater commitment to diversity and inclusion throughout our ranks; a broader ethical sourcing program spanning our supply chain; and a deepened commitment to good governance.
We find this report and shift toward ESG especially meaningful as each represents the culmination of the success and impact of CSR at Medline, to date, and holds our efforts to make a positive impact, both past and present, to a higher standard.
The coming year will bring new and broader goals for Medline’s ESG efforts.
We can’t wait to get started.
Learn more about how Medline is creating positive social and environmental change, here and around the world.
Original source can be found here.
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