Nuances of human anatomical waste management in a secondary care government hospital

Abstract

Introduction: The last century has witnessed rapid growth of the health-care institutions in both the public and the private sector as per the demand from the growing population. This has resulted in substantial amount of the biomedical waste (BMW) is generated which presents a health hazard. Objectives: The objective is to study the BMW management (BMWM) practices of the secondary care government hospital and to suggest measures for improvement of the current BMW practices for evolving a better and more efficient system of BMWM. Materials and Methods: The study design was a descriptive study in which various stakeholders and facets of BMWM system in government hospitals were taken into consideration. Samples drawn were purposive, with the objective of studying BMWM in a secondary care hospital. The observations, interviews, and focus group discussions were used for data collection. Results: The various categories of waste generated in a 345 bedded secondary care government hospital and the quantity on a monthly average basis was calculated. Total BMW collected and treated by health-care facility in kg/day is 12 kg, and the same amount is disposed of in a day. Conclusion: There is a dire need for making appropriate technologies, imparting professional training, and allocating adequate financial resources for effective and safe BMW disposal. Public-private partnership and total commitment of the top management will help in proper handling and disposal of BMW.