Sustainability and growth: Next steps for a nursing trailblazer

Image: SOS family giving first aid kits to village health volunteers in Fiji. As well as school supplies for the island’s one school.

In 2022, Claire Lane was named winner of the Health Minister’s Award for Nursing Trailblazers. This was for her innovative work founding the not-for-profit organisation, Save Our Supplies (SOS), to take on the challenge to address the enormous waste in the hospital system.

When she started back in 2012, Claire was working out of the granny flat she was living in at the time. We sat down with Claire to find out what she has been doing since winning the award, the positive impact it has had, and how SOS has grown from strength to strength.

You were the Trailblazer Award winner in 2022. What impact has that had on your work at SOS?

Winning the Trailblazer Award was an incredible honour, and it brought national recognition to the work of SOS. It gave our mission visibility at a much larger scale, which opened doors to new partnerships, volunteers, and donors. Personally, it validated years of effort in building an organisation from the ground up and reminded me that innovation in health care doesn’t always come from the biggest institutions—it can also come from grassroots ideas. The award has motivated me to think more strategically about sustainability and growth, so we can have an even greater impact both in Australia and internationally.

Describe a ‘typical’ day at SOS.

A typical day at SOS is a blend of hands-on work and strategic planning. In the mornings, I often spend time with our volunteers in the sorting room, where we process donations of unused medical supplies, check them for quality, and prepare shipments. Afternoons are usually dedicated to the operational side—liaising with hospitals, coordinating logistics, and connecting with partner organisations both here and overseas. No two days are ever the same; one day I might be organising pallets to go to the Pacific Islands, and the next I could be drafting a policy, supporting volunteers, or speaking at an event. That variety is part of what keeps the work so meaningful.

Image: SOS family stocking up Poutasi Hospital in Samoa.

Can you tell us about your work with international organisations?

At SOS, we’ve made a conscious decision to focus our efforts on supporting the Pacific Islands—our closest neighbours. These communities face significant challenges in accessing healthcare resources, and we see it as both a responsibility and a privilege to stand alongside them. Our partnerships across the region ensure that surplus medical supplies from Australia are redirected to where they are most needed, reducing waste while strengthening health systems. This work is very much a two-way exchange—we learn from our partners about local needs, cultural contexts, and the best ways to provide support. By focusing on the Pacific, we hope to build long-term, sustainable relationships that create lasting health improvements for the region.

You work with OneBridge. How did that come about, and what does it involve?

I first connected with Sonia Martin MACN, the founder of OneBridge, whose vision and dedication to providing health care for homeless and vulnerable communities have been a real inspiration to me. She has been both a mentor and a role model. While our current level of collaboration with OneBridge is limited, it has shown me how important it is to bridge the gap between access to health care and the people who need it most. My hope is that in the future, SOS can work more closely with OneBridge, bringing our resources and logistics experience together with their on-the-ground expertise to make an even greater difference.

What are your hopes and plans for the future of SOS?

Looking ahead, I want SOS to expand its reach while maintaining the integrity of our mission. That means growing our volunteer base, securing sustainable funding, and strengthening our governance so we can scale responsibly. I see SOS becoming a leader in the movement to reduce medical waste while improving healthcare access worldwide.

In the near term, our focus is on building stronger regional partnerships in the Pacific and exploring ways to extend our impact into vulnerable communities within Australia. But my dream goal is to see SOS collection bins in every hospital across the country, and for it to become part of hospital and government policy that no clean, usable medical supplies are ever thrown into landfill when they have the potential to save a life. Ultimately, my hope is that SOS not only delivers supplies but also inspires a cultural shift in how we think about healthcare waste and resource equity.

Image: A trip to remote PNG with an organisation called No Roads. Teaching first aid and running health clinics.

Image: Part of our trip to remote PNG with the organisation called No Roads.

This article was originally published in the Summer 2025-26 edition of ACN’s quarterly member publication The Hive. Members can access all past editions of The Hive on MyACN. Non-members can get a sneak peek by viewing our open-access articles.