A study of knowledge, attitude, and practices regarding biomedical waste management among the health-care workers in a multispeciality teaching hospital at Delhi

Abstract

Biomedical Wastes are defined as wastes that are generated during the diagnosis, treatment or immunization of human beings or animals, or in research activities pertaining thereto, or in the production or testing of biological [1]. Studies have shown that 85% of the waste generated in health care establishments is non-hazardous, about 10% is infectious Background: There is an increased global awareness among health professionals about the health hazards owing to biomedical waste (BMW) and appropriate management techniques, but the level of awareness in India is found to be unsatisfactory. Adequate knowledge about the health hazards of hospital waste, proper techniques and methods of handling the waste, and practice of safety measures can go a long way toward the safe disposal of hazardous hospital waste and protect the community from various adverse effects of the hazardous waste Objective: To find out the knowledge, attitude, and practices regarding BMW management among the health-care workers (HCWs). Materials and Methods: This hospital-based, cross-sectional, descriptive study was conducted in a 998-bedded multispeciality teaching hospital, in Delhi, from March 2 to April 10, 2013. The study consisted of 120 HCWs as participants, which included 30 doctors, 30 nurses, 30 laboratory staffs, and 30 sanitary staffs. A predesigned structured questionnaire consisting of 24 questions was administered to the participants after obtaining their consent and briefing them about the study. Data collected were analyzed using descriptive statistical methods applying χ 2-test to the frequency tables as a test of significance. Result: Correct color coding for waste disposal was known to 84.2% of respondents, and awareness about transmission of important diseases such as HIV infection and hepatitis B through BMW was known to 66.7% of the participants. The practice of recapping of used needles, which is one of the important risk factors for needle-stick injuries was found among 25.8% of respondents and was the highest among the sanitary staffs (83.3%). Awareness about the practice of initiating accident reporting pro forma on contact with blood/body fluids of HIV-infected patients was found to be 77.5% overall and only 10% among the sanitary staffs. Similarly, the awareness about the practice of postexposure prophylaxis for the prevention of HIV infection was found to be 71.7% overall and only 10% among the sanitary staffs, which could be owing to their poor literacy status. However, the attitude of all HCWs including the sanitary staffs toward BMW management was positive and favorable. Conclusion: Training of the sanitary staff on all aspects of BMW management will lead to a further improvement in BMW disposal in the hospital.

Awareness and practices regarding standard precautions for infection control among the hospital support staff in a tertiary care hospital in South India: a cross sectional study

“…This was similar to the results from the study conducted by Sehgal et al, where correct color coding for waste disposal was known to 80% of sanitary staff. 8 However in the present study, 45.7% did not know about biohazard symbols and only 54.3% were aware of the diseases that are spread by improper waste management. In the study conducted by Mathur et al in Allahabad, knowledge regarding the potential of transmission of diseases through biomedical waste was found among only 27% sanitary staff.…”

“…Sehgal RK et al, reported that the use of protective clothing to prevent infections was found to be 100% among all the categories of health care workers whereas a study conducted by Chudasama et al, in Rajkot reported that use of personal protective measures while handling biomedical waste was 74.1% among sanitary workers. 8,9 In the present study, 51.9% of workers had received vaccine against Hepatitis B infection while 54.3% were immunized against tetanus. Kumar et al, from a study in Nainital reported that 75% of the sanitary staff were not vaccinated against Hepatitis B.…”

“…However, in a study conducted by Sehgal et al, in Army's Base Hospital at Delhi, awareness regarding the exact legislative act/BMW rules was found to be nil for sanitary staff. 8 A study conducted by Chudasama et al, in Rajkot found that only 3.7% of sanitary workers were actually aware about the BMW act. 9 In the present study, 75.3% of respondents knew about categories of wastes.…”

“…The study conducted by Sehgal et al, found that 6.6% of sanitary staff felt that BMW management is not an issue at all. 8 Our study also brought out the practices of the support staff with regard to standard precautions. With regard to the practice of hand hygiene, 53 workers (89.8%) always practiced hand hygiene after coming in contact with blood or other body fluids of patients, 42 (68.9%) before touching patients and 58 (95.1%) after touching the patients.…”

Impact of educational intervention on knowledge and attitude of bio-medical waste management among health care personnel working in a tertiary care hospital of Bengaluru city, Karnataka, India

“…These findings are in contrast to the findings of a study conducted by Sehgal et al in which 95% participants were of the view that safe management of health-care waste is not the sole responsibility of the Government, 92.5% agreed that safe management of health-care waste is not an extra burden on them / institution and 81.7% were of the view that BMW management does not increase financial burden on hospital management. 12 In our study, majority (83.2%) of the participants agreed that segregation of BMW using colour coding is a must, and the percentage improved significantly after training. According to a study of Manchanda et al, 90% participants agreed that use of colour code for segregation is a must.…”