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July 13 - Island Health cleaning up with gown program
Retirement home seen as likely source of Bowker Creek spill
Capital Daily Team
July 13, 2025
Good morning !
Were you wondering where your Capital Daily newsletter was yesterday? You may have missed our announcement in Friday’s edition. We’re taking a little break now that the summer months are here, so we will be publishing five newsletters a week instead of seven.
That means your Saturday and Monday editions won’t be arriving in your inbox, but we will still be delivering all the community news and updates you need five days a week!
— Mark
Today’s approx. read time: 5 minutes
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Island Health reusable gown program fitting like a glove
Screenshot courtesy Island Health
It’s a gown that may turn an environmentalist’s frown upside down.
Island Health has launched a reusable gown program that will help keep medical staff safe in a green way.
The gowns are equipped with radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, so the number of times they’ve been washed can be tracked. It’s estimated each gown can be washed and reused up to 100 times before they are recycled.
Physicians and support staff wear the gowns—known as reusable isolation gowns—whenever they are at risk of being infected. The gowns are inspected on light tables after each wash, and those damaged beyond repair are taken out of circulation.
“These reusable gowns not only exceed industry standards due to the amazing way the laundry processes them, but they also give our teams the confidence to focus on what matters most—delivering exceptional care,” said Lisa Young, Island Health’s director of infection prevention and control.
Chris Walker, general manager of the Victoria Regional Laundry (VRL), which washes garments from health-care facilities on southern Vancouver Island, estimates approximately 850K disposable gowns are used each year south of Nanaimo. He’s hopeful the program will help convert three-quarters of those into reusable gowns by next year.
If all disposable gowns were to be replaced with reusable ones, Island Health stands to save roughly $2 million in this region. It also would eliminate 77K kilograms of carbon dioxide emissions each year, Island Health said.
The program, which launched in February, is expected to help support Island Health’s goal of diverting 70% of its waste from landfills by 2030. Right now, 15 units at the Royal Jubilee, seven at Victoria General, three at Saanich Peninsula, and one unit at the Summit long-term care home on Hillside are participating in the program.
⚠️ Capital Bulletin
Trail detours on Galloping Goose begin July 21 while crews fight invasive species with herbicide. Expect detours and closures on the trail at Sooke Road until Aug. 8. [CRD]
Last day of SKAMpede: Catch the final shows today for the 17th edition of the performance festival.
Sunny weather this week, with highs in the mid-20s.
Driving today? Check the current traffic situation via Google.
