Training materials are vital to the successful implementation of a healthcare plastics recycling program. Specifically, providing context and training will help ensure that staff clearly understand what materials are and are not part of the program and how the program will be managed. Use this generic template (customized to your organization) to help develop training specific to your hospital recycling program. See hprc.org/hospicycle for more tools and resources.

1. Plastics Recycling
Program Training
Your Hospital
Date of Training

2. Program Overview

3. Business Case Overview
• Outline the benefits of the program in a few slides
• Give the history of the program to date
• Throw down a challenge!
• Reference other programs in the surrounding area

4. Program Scope
• Outline the scope of the program
• Departments involved
• Goals of the program
• Recycle streams being collected

5. Program Champions/Leaders
• List the program champions and leaders
• Highlight upper management support
• These will be the key contacts in the hospital for
any questions or concerns
• Take an opportunity to introduce any key
recycler/hauler contact information
• Transfer point responsibility

6. Training

7. What is being collected?
• List all recycle streams for the program
• Give an overview of the items being collected
• Review the overall waste map for the hospital
Start with the Basics!

8. Hauler/Recycler Expectations
• Cover any information about your hauler/recycler’s
specifications for recycle streams
 Bale specifications
 What they will and will not accept
 Sorting needs
• Discuss risks associated with non-conforming
materials
 Responsibility
 Overview of any agreements that may be in place with
the Hauler/Recycler

9. Department Training
(make sure to include detailed information for each
department that is participating in the recycling program)

10. What is being collected?
• Give department specific details on what is being
collected
 Show images and pass out samples of items to be
collected
 Do not show images or samples of items not being
collected!
• Identify recycle streams (if not single stream)
 Provide details on desired recycle stream contents

11. Collection Bins
• Give detailed information around what bins each
recycled material needs to be in
• Show the bins in their proper place in the collection
scenario
• Reference signage and/or colors associated with
each bin
 Ensure a consistent signage and/or color scheme is
being used

12. How to collect?
• For each department, the collection process may
differ which is why it is important to cover detailed
collection processes for each department
• Be sure to give specific information regarding
 How the collection is incorporated into daily tasks
 Share work instruction information
• Overview process for transferring materials to the
central collection locations
 Transfer responsibility owner

13. Contamination Risks
• Be sure to thoroughly cover the processes in place
to avoid recycle stream contamination and the
processes for handling contaminated recycle
streams
• Cover all risks associated with recycle stream
contamination to stress its importance
When in doubt, throw it out!

14. Process Walk-Through

15. Walk-Through
• As part of training, take trainees through a walk-
through of the process
• Highlight critical steps
• Identify location of collection bins and central
collection locations
• Include everyone involved and walk through initial
collection all the way to transfer to the hauler/recycler
• If possible, consider a field-trip to even the recycler’s
location to give visibility to their handling and
processes

16. Audits

17. Auditing Plan
• Review start-up or pilot audit plans
 Criteria for success
• What moves the program out of the pilot stage?
• Review continuing audit plans
 Metrics being measured
 Scheduled audit plan
 Continuous training plan
• Refresher training
 Who will be performing audits?
 Recycler participation
• Annual overview of the program