Medical Waste Disposal is not Only Needles

Most people are used to seeing the red sharps container at their doctors office. But its not just needles that need special disposal, there are other kinds of medical waste that require specific procedures as well.

Medical waste is a term used for a variety of common waste materials generated by medical facilities, or any facility that uses needles to draw blood or plasma or comes into contact with potential infectious human or animal waste. Depending on the type, medical waste is regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency as well as OSHA. Some waste materials are infectious and some are biomedical. Medical waste can be generated by veterinary clinics, doctor’s offices and dentists, nursing homes and tattoo parlors. These waste products can be solids, liquids or semi liquid in nature. These wastes need to be disposed of in a safe and responsible manner and in observance of all state and federal guidelines.

Many agencies, at both the state and federal level, have similar guidelines for medical waste disposal. Types of medical waste include:

• Microbial Wastes — Including discarded cultures and specimens from laboratories.

• Blood — In both liquid, dried or caked form, as well as blood components such as plasma and serum.

• Pathological & Anatomy Wastes — Includes tissue, organs and body parts removed in surgical procedures or as the result of autopsies.

• Contaminated Animal Wastes — All carcasses, body parts, fluids, tissues and organs from medical research as well as deceased pets from veterinary clinics.

• Isolation Wastes — All waste materials generated by humans or animals that have been isolated to prevent the transmission of disease.

• Sharps — Includes all needles, syringes, scalpel and razor blades, but can also includes puncture waste bags and capillary tubes as well as slides and slide covers used in medical research.

The proper identification and disposal of the above outlined medical waste will help ensure the safety of both health care workers and the general public. Storage, disposal, proper labeling and warning signs for areas where waste is stored until transport are also important aspects of handling hazardous medical waste.

Categorised in: General

This post was written by Dev