Healthcare Waste Management Quiz

Prayer Before Class

• The prayer requests divine guidance for understanding, memory, learning, and expressing oneself.
• It asks for the Holy Spirit to dissipate darkness (sin and ignorance) and fill the intellect with wisdom and light.
• It requests successful completion of the work at hand.
• It concludes with a traditional Christian blessing.

Unit 6: Healthcare Waste Management

• The unit covers healthcare waste management principles.
• The goal is to classify biomedical and hazardous wastes and explain their proper management.

Outline

• Part I: Healthcare Wastes
  • Definition
  • Categories
  • Impact of Healthcare Wastes
• Part II: Healthcare Waste Management System
  • Reuse, Recovery, and Recycling
  • Legal Issues and Local Regulatory Agencies

Learning Outcome

• Students will classify biomedical and hazardous wastes and properly manage healthcare waste.

Healthcare Wastes

• 75-90% of healthcare waste is non-hazardous.
• 10-25% is hazardous and may be infectious, toxic, or radioactive.

Healthcare Waste Generators

• Hospitals and medical centers
• Infirmaries
• Birthing homes
• Clinics and other health-related facilities
  • Medical
  • Ambulatory
  • Dialysis
  • Healthcare centers and dispensaries
  • Surgical
  • Alternative medicine
  • Dental
  • Veterinary
• Laboratories and research centers
  • Medical and biomedical laboratories
  • Medical research centers
  • Blood banks and blood collection services
  • Dental prosthetic laboratories
  • Nuclear medicine laboratories
  • Biotechnology laboratories
  • Animal research and testing laboratories
  • Drug testing laboratories
  • HIV testing laboratories
• Drug manufacturers
• Drug rehabilitation centers
• Training centers for embalmers
• Medical technology internship training centers
• Schools of radiologic technology
• Medical schools
• Nursing homes
• Dental schools
• Mortuary and autopsy centers

Categories of Healthcare Wastes

• Hazardous: Sharps, Infectious, Pathological, Anatomical, Pharmaceutical, Genotoxic, Chemical, Radioactive, Pressurized Containers
• Non-Hazardous (General): Recyclable, Biodegradable, Residual

Hazardous or General Waste

• Waste poses a variety of environmental and health risks.

Infectious Waste

• Infectious waste contains pathogens or toxins causing disease.
• Examples: Cultures and stocks of infectious agents, waste from surgeries on patients with infectious diseases, wastes from patients in isolation wards, wastes in contact with infected patients undergoing hemodialysis, infected animals from research laboratories, and objects contacted by infected individuals or animals.
• High Infectious Diseases (WHO): SARS, HIV, AIDS, pulmonary tuberculosis, anthrax, Ebola
• High Infectious Diseases (DOH): Hepatitis B and C, rabies, infectious Group A streptococcal infections, transmissible spongiform encephalitis, HIV/AIDS, meningococcemia, viral hemorrhagic fevers (e.g., African Ebola, Lassa or Marburg), yellow fever, plague, and SARS.

Pathological and Anatomical Waste

• Tissues, body fluids, and organs from biopsies, autopsies, or surgical procedures.
• Examples: Internal organs and tissues for histopathological examination.

Sharps

• Waste items causing cuts, pricks, or puncture wounds.
• Examples: Needles, syringes, scalpels, saws, blades, broken glass, and knives.

Chemical Waste

• Consists of solid, liquid, and gaseous chemicals used in diagnostic and experimental work, and in cleaning, housekeeping, and disinfecting procedures.
• Hazardous properties (Toxic, Corrosive, Flammable, Reactive, Oxidizing)
• Examples: Laboratory reagents; x-ray film developing solutions; disinfectants and soaking solutions; used batteries; concentrated ammonia solutions; concentrated hydrogen peroxide; chlorine; and mercury.

Pharmaceutical Waste

• Expired, split, and contaminated pharmaceutical products, drugs, vaccines, and sera.
• Examples: Bottles, vials, boxes with residues, gloves, masks, and connective tubing.

Genotoxic and Cytotoxic Waste

• Highly hazardous waste with mutagenic, teratogenic, or carcinogenic properties.
• Examples: Urine, feces, and vomit from patients containing cytotoxic drugs; antineoplastic drugs; contaminated materials from drug preparation; outdated drugs and excess or returned solutions.

Radioactive Waste

• Waste exposed to radionuclides (radioactive diagnostic or radiotherapeutic materials; residues from shipment; liquids, gases, and solids contaminated with radionuclides with genotoxic effects).
• Examples: Cobalt, Technetium, Iodine, irradiated blood products, contaminated wastes.

Non-Hazardous or General Waste

• No contact with infectious agents, hazardous chemicals, or radioactive materials.
• Does not pose a health hazard to humans or the environment.
• Examples: Recyclable waste, biodegradable waste, and residual waste.

Recyclable General Waste

• Paper products, aluminum, plastics, glass, and wood.

Biodegradable General Waste

• Kitchen waste; leftover food from patients with non-communicable diseases; flowers; and garden waste that can be composted.

Biodegradable General Waste (3)

• General wastes not classified as recyclable or biodegradable.

Impact of Healthcare Wastes

• Potential risks to healthcare facility staff, patients, visitors, support staff, waste management workers, and the general public.
• Exposure results in possible injuries, infections, and environmental hazards.
• Chronic exposure can be prolonged with minute quantities; acute exposure can have short periods with large quantities.

Adverse Health Outcomes

• Sharp-inflicted injuries; toxic exposure to pharmaceutical products; air and water pollution from incineration; and chemical burns or thermal injuries from inappropriate procedures.

Adverse Health Outcomes (Continued)

• Landfilled healthcare wastes lead to contaminated drinking water, surface water, and groundwater, and release chemical pollutants if not handled properly.
• Improper disposal leads to the release of pollutants into the air. Incineration is not allowed in the Philippines.
• Alternatives to incineration include autoclaving, microwaving, and steam treatment.

Benefits of Proper Waste Management

• Protecting patients, health workers, and the general population.
• Supporting global efforts to protect the environment.
• Ensuring that healthcare institutions follow regulations.
• Preventing liability and reputation loss.

Assignment

• Answer specific pages (189, 190, 211, 212) from a textbook ("Principles of Medical Laboratory Science 1 by Benitez").
• Deadline: November 26, 2024, at 12:00 noon.

References

• Includes specific publications and a link to a PDF document as references.
• These are likely from Benitez, P., et al. (2019); Department of Health (2020) etc.

Dominican Blessing

• A prayer invoking blessings for wisdom, healing, and guidance.
• It includes asking for God's help in work, communication, and leading to salvation through Christ.
• The prayer concludes with a final blessing and an "Amen."