About us
The mission of the Coalition Against Healthcare Waste is simple: we want to reduce or eliminate healthcare waste generated by all sectors, from hospitals to dentist’s offices to veterinary clinics, with a special focus on single use plastics. As the only organization dedicated to this topic, we offer unique opportunities to make a difference.
We need to reduce the use of single use plastics, reuse what we can, and recycle when necessary.
How will we do this? We will start with small projects suggested by members, working in one workplace at a time, and then spreading to another. We will work with individuals, and we will work with organizations. No idea is too small, no project too large, for us to work on together.
At the CAHCW, we value diversity, equity, and inclusion. Our founder is a proud member of the queer community.
Our Founder
Shelley Mitchell, RN, MS, is a doctoral candidate in Educational Sustainability, soon to defend her dissertation. Her dissertation topic is Emotion-Symbolic Work in Community College Biology Students, with a focus on healthcare waste.
Shelley is currently a professor of allied health sciences at a large, urban community college in Texas.