A new source of tools

Had to have a lung function test a few days ago the young lass blocked my nose with a nifty clamp when finished she was about to throw it in the bin when I yelled I'LL have that thanks lol then I had to explain why I wanted it.



I couldn't talk her into giving me a few more lol ooh well it was worth a try.
Overall length is 65mm width 33mm with removable silicon pads

Great little gadget.....Now I wonder where they originate from?

Medical supplies in this case in boxes of 100 I didn't see a brand name.

My daughter got an ingrowing toenail sorted at local surgery , just as the GP was about to bin the tools, (sprung clippers,diamond file and a couple of other things ) I asked for them and he asked why , so I told him for model making and he promptly handed them over

Great. probably cost heaps to buy yourself.

wbeedie wrote:

... just as the GP was about to bin the tools ...

Good for you wbeedie, but what a waste otherwise! Is this really more economical and hygienic than some boiling water and a drop of disinfectant?

Sadly I expect it is, cost of one of those are like 5p maybe even 2p each depending on the batch size.

Doing the maths, time it takes to sterilize them maybe an hour at a guess, that's 1 hour you have to pay someone minimum wage which is like £6.20 i think, add the cost of sterilization equipment which can be anywhere from £1 up to £10,000.. depending on the method of sterilization (chemical or the fancy new infared/microwave machines).

Given the fact that hospitals are no longer as clean as they should be (we all know it) you cant guarantee that a reusable item will be fully sterile for the next use, which could equal to a huge lawsuit and payout should the worst happen.

Overall conclusion, cheaper to use single use items.

This isn’t the place to start an off-topic debate (which could quickly become an enormous essay on its own), but I’m surprised by your response. I am inclined to make two major comments though:

1. Where do they go next? Are they just dumped in a hole in the ground, along with whatever contamination they carry untreated?

2. They were sterilized in the first place, and that cost must be included in the 2p a kit.

I still can’t see why they couldn’t be re-cycled, even if they were collected and returned to the manufacturer for treatment in bulk. Surely this is better than always drawing on finite raw materials which, by definition, can’t go on forever.

It’s not entirely off-topic. Don’t we modellers all send our used batteries, broken electronics, and scrap metal for recycling nowadays?

Some cracking points there Mr P as for what happens to disposed of medical equipment that may or may not be contaminated here in the UK it is all incinerated which possibly cost nearly as much a sterilizing so make your own mind up on the state of the NHS eh

Sadly the world has turned into a 'disposable culture', but also given that if i showed up to the docs office with something wrong and he pulled out a metal instrument he was going to put down my throat (or where the sun don't shine).. first thing i would ask would be ''Are you sure you sterilized that right?''

Phil is right most medical equipment is incinerated in the UK after use and it is very wasteful, but i think you need to ask yourself, would u want something stuck in you that was used on someone else not knowing if it truly was full sterilized, because i seriolsy doubt it would be given the way people in the NHS work today.

Now you might think that encouraging the situation, however i was at the denstists a short time back, only for a check up the woman was poking and prodding my gums with this metal pointy thing, got the all clear all fine, but you need a filling on this tooth which we can book you in for in a few days bla bla bla .. then i went home, 2 days later my gums swelled up an i went to the doctors and he said i had an infection in my gums and had to take antibiotics for a week (great way to loose weight i tell ya) only thing i can figure is that the instrument this dentist used wasn't sterilized properly.

Worst thing about that experience was that it was a private dental firm and not NHS so i had to pay £90 to suffer... and then pay £7.50 for the prescription!