Blister pack recycling initiative takes off thanks to heart transplant patient You are here:HomeNewsroomNews Blister pack recycling initiative takes off thanks to heart transplant patient 30 May 2023 One St Vincent’s heart transplant recipient has been the catalyst for a fundamental shift in the way we recycle medication blister packs. Upon commencing the regime of taking a high volume of medications, an essential and life-long part of post-transplant care, it became quickly apparent that a large number of medication blister packs from organ transplant patients were not being adequately recycled. Manufactured using both plastic and aluminium, medication blister packs are traditionally difficult and expensive to recycle. Purchasing a TerraCycle recycling box, an organisation dedicated to finding solutions for hard to recycle products, the box was gifted to the Heart Lung Clinic, inviting fellow patients to bring in their empty packs back to St Vincent’s for recycling. The initiative was well received amongst transplant patients, and with a successful trial under their belt, Transplant Nurse, Rodrigo Fritis-Lamora approached drug company, Astellas, pharmaceutical supplier of the specific medications used post-transplant, to sponsor the unit with a further five TerraCycle special purpose recycling boxes. The boxes will support recycling of the medication blister packs surrendered by our patients for a further 12 months. Furthermore, Astellas will recycle any blister pack surrendered by Heart Lung patients, regardless of which brand. “The hope is for other drug companies to take note and start to support important initiatives such as this one”, said Rodrigo. “We’d love to see this project rolled out across all areas of the hospital, not just Heart Lung”. The full social impact of the extended trial is yet to be determined but the team are aiming to keep at least 8,000 medication blister packs from landfill each year.