Healthcare professionals and administrators recognize that providing a safe care environment is an important step toward creating healthier communities. Proper medical waste management, which involves separating medical waste from other waste types and storing, collecting, and transporting it in designated containers, is an important but often overlooked part of improving healthcare facilities. Proper medical waste segregation has numerous benefits for healthcare institutions and their communities.
Maintain Regulatory Compliance
Medical waste is frequently required to be separated under applicable laws. As a result, implementing a medical waste segregation program can assist healthcare companies in avoiding legal action or enforcement. Waste segregation can be difficult, but working with an experienced waste management supplier can help build an effective approach. When designing a waste segregation policy, healthcare companies should consider the state and municipal requirements that apply to their facility.
Reduce Waste Management Costs
Proper medical waste segregation can help healthcare companies identify the volume of each category of produced trash. Organizations can reduce trash disposal expenses by segregating and tracking waste kinds. Of all the garbage created by healthcare companies, 85% is general municipal waste, which is usually subject to little control. Organizations should segregate the small fraction of regulated wastes that require specific handling or treatment to avoid overpaying for solid trash or regulated waste services.
Contribute to Mitigating Environmental Impacts
Improper waste segregation might potentially have negative environmental consequences. For example, instead of isolating pharmaceutical waste for cremation, it can end up in surface or drinking waters, creating a risk to humans, animals, and plant life. To assist prevent these and other consequences, healthcare organizations should identify and manage the many waste streams they generate.
Help Improve Safety
Front-line healthcare workers must be safe when segregating and disposing of medical waste. Waste segregation can help to lower the risk of damage or exposure. For example, disposing of a used sharp (such as a needle or syringe) in a standard trash can may result in a needlestick injury. Using a closable, puncture-resistant, and adequately labeled sharps container to dispose of old needles reduces the risk of exposure.
Healthcare firms may assist keep workers safe by implementing a strong medical waste segregation policy. Furthermore, proper medical waste management benefits both patients and non-provider employees (such as Environmental Services personnel). Employers should train staff on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, which covers job-related dangers and how to avoid workplace exposures.
Waste Segregation Process
Medical waste segregation is best explained by the color and type of waste container.
Red bags and sharps containers: Non-sharp medical waste, such as blood-saturated gauze or bandages, should be disposed of in red bags. Red sharps containers hold used needles, blades, and other sharp equipment that may be contaminated with blood or OPIM.
Yellow Containers: Yellow containers or bags are used to dispose of trace amounts of chemotherapeutic medicines. This refers to garbage that has come into touch with or has previously included chemotherapeutic drugs.
Blue lid bins and containers: Blue lid bins and containers are used to dispose of non-hazardous waste medications. Although not mandated, the United States Environmental Protection Agency suggests that such garbage be isolated for incineration rather than flushed down the drain or disposed of in regular trash.
Black Containers: Black containers are used for hazardous trash, especially pharmaceuticals. Waste disposed of in black containers will either be listed or have hazardous waste properties (ignitable, corrosive, reactive, or poisonous).
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