Clinical waste has the potential to cause harm to patients, staff, the local community and the environment, so it’s important it’s disposed of properly.
Let’s take a look at what is clinical waste, what goes into a clinical waste bin, and how to dispose of clinical waste.
What is clinical waste?
Clinical waste (sometimes referred to as medical waste or healthcare waste) includes anything that needs to be discarded from healthcare settings that has the potential to cause harm, infection or disease.
Healthcare facilities which generate clinical and related wastes include hospitals, medical laboratories, dental practices, mortuaries, veterinary clinics and other similar services and settings.
Are sharps clinical waste?
Yes, sharps are considered clinical waste, and should be disposed of as such. Sharps include needles, syringes, blades and other sharp objects that have the potential to cause injury or spread infection.
What is considered clinical waste?
There are many forms of clinical waste that may be present in a healthcare setting. These include:
- Infectious waste: Such as contaminated equipment or waste from infectious people, e.g. used bandages or swabs.
- Pharmaceutical waste: Such as expired medications.
- Sharps waste: Sharp objects such as syringes, needles, blades such as scalpels.
- Cytotoxic waste: Genotoxic waste such as chemotherapy drugs used to treat cancer.
- Hazardous chemical waste: Chemicals, disinfectants, solvents used in the healthcare setting.
- Pathological waste: Organs, bodily fluids, human tissues or body parts.
- Radioactive waste: From radioactive diagnostic or therapy materials.
Why is proper clinical waste disposal so important?
When improperly disposed of, clinical waste has the potential to cause harm to the staff and patients of the facility, the local community, and the environment. Improper clinical waste management can lead to injury, disease or the spread of infection.
Healthcare waste has the potential to contain harmful microorganisms, including drug-resistant strains, which can spread to healthcare workers, other patients or the local environment.
If improperly disposed of, injuries can occur such as needle-stick injuries, chemical or radiation burns, or toxic exposure.
If clinical waste ends up in landfill, it can lead to contamination of the surrounding areas with toxic pathogens released into the environment.
Waste segregation
Separating clinical waste from non-clinical waste is a vital step in the safe management of medical hazardous waste. Clinical waste bins should be clearly labelled and appropriately colour coded.
If not separated, either all waste is sent for treatment which can use unnecessary amounts of resources, or none of the waste is properly disposed of and clinical waste is sent off to landfill as general waste. This has the potential for serious environmental and public health consequences.
How to dispose of clinical waste
One of the biggest reasons for incorrect disposal of medical waste is a lack of awareness or adequate training for staff in health facilities. Having a sound waste management system in place is crucial to ensure that offensive waste is properly managed and disposed of.
Waste management strategies will depend on the type of clinical waste being handled, and each healthcare setting may have their own protocols in place.
Human waste disposal
Bodily fluids, human tissue, organs and body parts carry the threat of spreading infection if improperly disposed of.
Body fluid clean up kits and biohazard spill kits come with everything necessary to clean up bodily fluids, including a clinical waste bag.
Many people may not even realise the importance of cleaning up bodily fluids correctly. It’s vital that the person cleaning is wearing appropriate PPE and correctly disposes of the items used to clean the mess. Using general cleaning equipment (such as a mop and bucket) can lead to cross contamination of potentially dangerous pathogens.
Bagged clinical waste should be placed in a medical waste bin. In Australia, medical waste bins are yellow.
Disposal of sharps
Immediate disposal of sharps is necessary to reduce the chance of injury or accidental reuse. Sharps containers (colour coded yellow according to Australian regulations) should be placed regularly throughout all healthcare facilities to ensure proper practices are followed for the disposal of sharps.
Sharps containers are puncture-proof and rigid, and should be kept separate from other waste.
Disposal of cytotoxic waste
Cytotoxic waste has the potential to cause damage to human tissues and cells, and it’s vital that it is properly managed and stored. Cytotoxic waste – including related sharps – should be kept separate from other waste.
All cytotoxic waste should be placed in puncture- and leak-proof purple containers which are clearly labelled.
Disposal of pharmaceutical waste
Medicines take a long time to break down and can leak into the environment. Medicine should never be disposed of as general waste.
Pharmaceutical products can be disposed of in a medical waste bin, or by participating in the Return Unwanted Medicines (RUM) service.
Incineration
Incineration is widely used to dispose of healthcare waste, but there are regulations that incinerators must meet in order to comply.
Incineration isn’t always the appropriate course of action, and can lead to toxic emissions and air pollution. For example, incineration of heavy metals can cause toxic metals to leak into the environment.
Similar practices which are alternatives to incineration include microwaving, autoclaving or steaming, and they produce fewer toxic emissions.
Personal Protective Equipment
Waste handlers should always follow the correct procedures for wearing PPE when handling potentially infectious clinical waste. This includes a face shield, splash gown and gloves. Any disposable PPE that comes into contact with body fluids must be treated as healthcare waste.
Medical waste disposal with LFA First Response
Safe management of clinical waste is essential for the safety of patients, staff, the local community and the environment. LFA First Response supplies clean up kits and PPE to ensure that clinical waste is safely handled in healthcare facilities and other places undertaking related clinical activity.
Order online, or get in touch with our friendly team today on 1800 681 544.
