Sometimes a fresh set of eyes from outside looking in spurs positive change...
During the lockdown hospital regulators were no where to be found yet hospitals stepped up to meet the extra ordinary demands.
There is a lot of material waste plus trash generated in a Hospital setting from outdates, single use items, etc...
During the lockdown the supply chain was disrupted and reprocessing single use, extending outdates and doing more with less became the norm.
One of our well seasoned combat docs said it best when he said supplies that outdate in the civilian world don't in the military world...
We had thousands of N95 masks that outdated... normally they would be discarded but in a worldwide mask shortage they were not.
The rationale behind the expiration date is the elastic straps on the mask may loose tension over time...
It's not rocket science to stretch the elastic and check for yourself...
Optimal storage is a far greater variable as opposed to a date stamped on a box...