New partnership with QAS highlights sustainability
When like-minded organisations come together with a shared vision, meaningful change follows.
Our new partnership with the Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) is a powerful example of what’s possible when innovation meets intent. Together, we’ve introduced dedicated SOS collection bins to the team at QAS North Lakes, creating a simple but effective pathway to recover surplus medical supplies that would otherwise go to waste.
Pictured left is QAS Paramedic Nadine Warmerdam from QAS North Lakes, taking delivery of the SOS Collection bins from SOS Founder, Claire Lane. Picture right is QAS metro north Sustainability team leader Allen Elliott and SOS CEO Tracy Scanlan at Queensland children's hospital for sustainability and resilience awareness event.
“Healthcare waste is a growing problem globally", says Allen; "but we are committed to reducing our carbon footprint, and to do our bit to meet the governments emissions targets.”
In fast-paced clinical environments, it’s inevitable that some items go unused. Until now, many of these perfectly viable products had limited options beyond disposal. Through this partnership, those same supplies are being diverted from landfill and redirected to where they are urgently needed—ensuring they fulfil their intended purpose: safe, effective patient care.
The environmental impact is immediate and tangible. Tonnes of usable medical supplies are recovered each month by the SOS team, alongside partners like QAS across the state. But beyond the environmental benefit lies something even more powerful—impact that extends far beyond Queensland.
Each item collected represents potential: a wound dressed with a clean bandage, an infection prevented, a patient treated with fit-for-purpose surgical tools. By working together, we are not only reducing environmental harm but also strengthening global health equity.
The SOS partnership with QAS reflects a shared commitment to practical solutions—ones that are efficient, scalable, and deeply human. It’s a reminder that solving complex challenges doesn’t always require complex answers—sometimes, it starts with a shared goal, a willingness to act, and a wheelie bin!
Partnering with SOS offers organisations an opportunity to create tangible, measurable impact while advancing their own values, objectives, and sustainability targets. Whether a hospital, corporate group, logistics provider, or community organisation, our partners share in a collective effort to reduce waste, protect the environment, and strengthen healthcare systems in the Asia Pacific region.
Hospitals and healthcare providers interested in supporting SOS by installing a collection bin or learning more about our work are encouraged to get in touch: admin@saveoursupplies.com.au
Together, we can turn surplus into practical support, and compassion into action.
