Driving Regional Healthcare Innovation: A Collaborative Approach to Surgical Tray Optimization

Vlaanderen Circulair is the hub and inspiration for the Flemish circular economy in Belgium. It is a partnership of governments, companies, civil society, and the knowledge community working together to drive sustainable change.  

Noorderhart Hospital, Belgium is committed to high-quality, patient-centered care, continuously measuring and improving its performance. Noorderhart actively collaborates with regional partners to enhance healthcare accessibility and efficiency, ensuring seamless coordination across primary, specialized, and tertiary care.  

With support from Vlaanderen Circulair, Noorderhart partnered with DEO.care to optimize surgical instrument trays through data-driven insights. This initiative is part of a larger effort to advance circular healthcare in the region, supported by nearly €1.7 million in funding aimed at improving resource management, reducing waste, and promoting sustainability in hospital operations.

By refining surgical tray configurations, Noorderhart has achieved greater efficiency, reduced waste, and streamlined processes, leading to a more sustainable and cost-effective healthcare system. This collaboration with DEO.care demonstrates how data-driven solutions can drive long-term improvements in workflow, cost savings, and staff well-being.

Optimizing Surgical Tray Usage

The project set out to address three key goals at Noorderhart: 

• Identify unused but sterilized instruments in current tray configurations.  
• Increase instrument utilization per tray to over 50%.  
• Evaluate the impact of tray optimization on sterilization cycles, resource efficiency, and cost savings.  

DEO.care supported this initiative by leveraging its Instrument Analyzer to capture real-world usage data and identify inefficiencies in surgical trays. The data-driven insights enabled the hospital to optimize tray configurations, ensuring that frequently used instruments were prioritized while unnecessary instruments were reduced or eliminated. While the initial scope allowed for a focused approach on instrument trays for two key areas—laparoscopic procedures and small joint procedures—the methodology can be extended to other surgical domains.

Driving Cost Savings and Efficiency Gains

One of the most compelling outcomes of the project was the significant and recurring cost savings. By optimizing tray usage and reducing sterilization cycles, Noorderhart was able to save €56,500 annually—representing a 50% reduction in costs for the year. These ongoing savings were achieved through improved tray configurations, fewer sterilization cycles, and better alignment of instruments with surgical needs—efforts that ensured sterilization resources were used more efficiently. Notably, the procedures included in this initiative account for 13% of the hospital’s annual procedure volume, highlighting the potential impact of further optimization. This strong and sustainable financial outcome has sparked interest in expanding the effort to additional surgical areas, where similar recurring cost savings and efficiency gains can be achieved.

Impact on Team Well-Being and Workflow

Beyond financial and operational benefits, staff well-being also improved. By optimizing trays, the physical load on surgical staff was reduced, with fewer instruments to handle and prepare, decreasing fatigue and creating a more ergonomic work environment. Additionally, the mental load was alleviated, as the optimized trays were more predictable and tailored to specific needs, allowing staff to focus more on the task at hand, leading to smoother workflows. 

A Collaborative Approach to Innovation

This project highlights the power of collaboration between government, industry, and healthcare providers. With DEO.care’s data-driven insights and funding support from Vlaanderen Circulair, Noordehart hospital optimized surgical tray configurations, reduced sterilization costs, and improved workflow.

By showcasing how innovative technologies can address challenges and foster long-term improvements in both cost-effectiveness and patient care, this initiative exemplifies how such partnerships are driving sustainable, efficient healthcare solutions in the region to support the circular economy.