ArticleMedical anthropology quarterly2026
Plastics and labor: The case of disposable medical plastics.
Article in Medical anthropology quarterly, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Abstract
Plastics are ubiquitous in the contemporary practice of medicine, where they are tied to notions of hygiene and quality of care. However, when plastics first infiltrated global medical practice, they did so because of considerations related to patient comfort and durability. It was only after developments in the sterilization of plastics and the aggressive marketing of single-use plastics that medical plastics came to be emblematic of hygiene as they are today. In this article, drawing from historical data and fieldwork in India, I argue that dependence upon disposable medical plastics is not just about infection control but also about enabling reductions in labor at the site of use. This labor is displaced into the future-as new plastic production-and downstream, onto waste management. Medical plastics thus function as a materiality of displaced labor in clinical settings. Recognizing this displacement effect is crucial to plastic control interventions within sustainable healthcare.
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