Each year, billions of medical injections are administered through the use of self-injectors. These devices allow patients to self-administer their injectable medication. Globally, aging populations coupled with a rise in chronic diseases and pressures on healthcare systems are leading to increased prescriptions of biologics and therapeutics to manage these conditions.
This trend is resulting in steady growth in the popularity of self-injection devices. However, the vast majority of these injectors are single-use disposable devices, contributing significantly to the waste generated within the healthcare sector. The circular economy, rooted in principles of designing out waste and using waste as a resource, might offer a solution. Possible circular strategies include reuse, remanufacturing, and recycling. However, given the complexity of the healthcare supply chain and the stringent focus on safety and hygiene within the industry, these strategies still face challenges that need to be overcome.

This thesis explored the redesign of auto-injectors to integrate circular economy (CE) principles, focusing on the Ypsomate auto-injector. Assigned by pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson (J&J), who have shown interest in developing circular systems for self-injectors, this study aimed to make CE design principles tangible for J&J. Key research questions addressed included identifying barriers and opportunities for CE in disposable self-injectors and applying potential circular strategies to redesign the Ypsomate.

The project followed a creative problem-solving approach involving literature research, expert interviews, co-creation and a field visit to J&J's innovation site. Findings highlighted industry trends focus on patient safety and usability as well as several sustainability developments. However, end-of-life design considerations remain underexplored. The study identified major barriers to CE integration, such as the challenge of combining safety with reuse strategies due to the low value and high hygiene criticality of auto-injectors.

The most promising opportunity was found in the safe, cost-effective separation of hygiene-critical from non-critical components, reducing reprocessing requirements. An in-depth product analysis of the Ypsomate identified relevant circular strategies: Design for Recycling, Disassembly, Component Reuse, and Extended Life. A redesign concept, the MediLoop was developed and prototyped to demonstrate the feasibility of significantly improving CE strategies for end-of-life recovery.

This graduation project consists of the journey of developing a context-specific training system for nurses to administer a paracervical block (PCB) using the medical Chloe Syringe Extension Device (SED). This six-month during project is being carried out on behalf of TU Delft and Chloe Company. The aim of the project is to enable nurses in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) in low-resource settings (LRS) to competently use the Chloe device for pain management during Manual Vacuum Aspiration (MVA). The outcome of this project is a two-component training system: a job aid and a demonstration device designed to enhance the training experience and guidance for use.

The project approach was implemented using a context-driven design approach, consisting of Research & Analysis, Ideation, Conceptualisation and Evaluation. Literature research on the topic and its context is carried out, while further knowledge is gathered through contacts with sixteen Dutch and Kenyan medical professionals. In addition to individual interviews, two studies are conducted in the Dutch and Kenyan contexts. A six-week field trip to Kisumu, Kenya, during which ten medical professionals in three hospitals were visited, made it possible to ensure that the design truly fits its context. These medical professionals provided valuable input to the iterative design process and helped to shape the final concept design of the training system.

Further designing is enabled through prototyping, the use of decision-making methods and continuous iteration. This allowed new ideas to be generated, tested, and therefore new improvements to be made. Ultimately, new requirements could be identified, providing the opportunity to create even more valuable designs.

Future research should focus on further developing these designs, giving them an embodiment, and creating the possibility of actually implementing the training system in its intended context.

The development of the Chloe Syringe Extension Device (SED) is an initiative of Karlheinz Samenjo, Dr Gwer and Dr Aparna for the Kenyan market. The Chloe SED is a reusable, 3D-printable device that extends the locally available 10ml syringes and it is designed for female patients to be used for procedures related to pregnancy issues, such as Manual Vacuum Aspiration (MVA). The embodiment design is nearing completion. This master thesis explores further steps on the Chloe SEDs route to the introduction in Kenya, both legal and non-legal. Ultimately, this research aims at providing recommendations that can contribute to the acceptance of the device by its users.