The UK government has set out its plans for a circular approach to MedTech that will ensure products are reused, recycled or remanufactured.

The programme, which has been developed by a group of over 80 stakeholders from across the UK MedTech industry, aims to deliver 30 actions by 2045.

These include exploring new commercial incentives to provide circular MedTech, creating new standards to enable innovative products, and establishing new collaborations to accelerate emerging technology.

In its roadmap, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said the benefits of a circular economy in healthcare is understood but difficult to scale and rarely put into practice.

The DHSC claims its roadmap would provide opportunities for the MedTech industry to innovate and grow whilst also improving patient care and value for the NHS. It also said the move would support the transition to net zero.

According to its research, the government department said that 88 per cent of Belgian companies who employed circular techniques experienced considerably less disruption during the COVID-19 pandemic than those that did not.

Data from the DHSC also finds that reuse of medical devices provides carbon savings of between 38 per cent to 56 per cent within a product lifecycle.

"Every single MedTech product purchased by the NHS is bought because we prioritise and always will prioritise patient care and safety but the volume of products thrown away after a single use - from tourniquets and scissors to high-tech electronics - should concern all of us,” said Baroness Merron, parliamentary under-secretary of state for patient safety, women’s health and mental health. “We can no longer accept this as normal practice."

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