Medical waste management in three areas of rural China

Abstract

ObjectiveThe purpose of this paper is to describe current practices of medical waste management, including its generation, investments, collection, storage, segregation, and disposal, and to explore the level of support from upper tiers of the government and health care system for medical waste management in rural China.MethodsThe authors draw on a dataset comprised of 209 randomly selected rural township health centers (THCs) in 21 counties in three provinces of China: Anhui, Shaanxi and Sichuan. Surveys were administered to health center administrators in sample THCs in June 2015.ResultsThe results show that the generation rate of medical waste was about 0.18 kg/bed, 0.15 kg/patient, or 0.13 kg/person per day on average. Such per capita levels are significant given China’s large rural population. Although investments of medical waste facilities and personnel in THCs have improved, results show that compliance with national regulations is low. For example, less than half of hazardous medical waste was packed in sealed containers or containers labeled with bio-hazard markings. None of the THCs segregated correctly according to the categories required by formal Chinese regulations. Many THCs reported improper disposal methods of medical waste. Our results also indicate low levels of staff training and low rates of centralized disposal in rural THCs.ConclusionsMedical waste is a serious environmental issue that is rising on the agenda of policymakers. While a large share of THCs has invested in medical waste facilities and personnel, it appears that actual compliance remains low. Using evidence of low rates of training and centralized disposal, we surmise that a lack of support from upper tiers of management is one contributing factor. Given these findings, we recommend that China’s policymakers should enhance support from upper tiers and improve monitoring as well as incentives in order to improve medical waste management.

Self-reported healthcare waste segregation practice and its correlate among healthcare workers in hospitals of Southeast Ethiopia

“…The present and the previously conducted studies suggested that HCW segregation practice requires special attention, and if the segregation process is poor or even a very small amount of hazardous waste is added to the general waste category, then the entire mass of the general waste can be unnecessarily polluted by the hazardous waste [16]. In line with this, several studies conducted in Uganda [32], Sudan [37], Iran [38], Jordan [39], Nigeria [40], and China [41] reported poor HCW segregation practice among healthcare workers.…”

Resíduo Hospitalar E Seu Impacto: Uma Revisão Da Literatura

“…GARCÍA-UBAQUE; ZAFRA-MEJÍA, TRAN et al, 2019;FARROKHI et al, 2016;ANOZIE, 2017;AHMAD et al, 2019;URIOSTE et al, 2018;MARCZAK, 2016;AUGUSTIN et al, 2016;FARZADKIA et al, 2018;JOVANOVIĆ et al, 2016;GAO et al, 2018;KRISHNAN;DEVAMANI;JAYALAKSHMI, 2015;OLIVEIRA;VIANA;CASTAÑON, 2018;PRAYITNO et al, 2018;THANH et al, 2016;SREEREMYA;RAJIV, 2017;NOGUEIRA et al, 2018;KUCHIBANDA;MAYO, 2015;YOUSEFI;AVAK ROSTAMI, 2017;NEVEU C;MATUS C, 2007;AL-MOMANI et al, 2019;PACHAURI et al, 2019;AFOLABI et al, 2018;DEWI et al, 2019;NJUANGANG;LIYANAGE;AKINTOYE, 2018;KIM et al, 2018;MUKHAIBER, 2017;JASEM;JUMAHA;GHAWI, 2018;GARIBALDI et al, 2017;NAMBURAR et al, 2018).…”

An Analysis of Solid Waste Management Practices in Lamjung District Community Hospital, Nepal

“…Biomedical waste handling is a sensitive process, which requires a high standard of preparation [2]. It requires a specific training that depends on the nature of the work in the hospital, the hazard and worker experience, and also the responsibilities of individual workers [3].…”

“…In recent years, amount of waste generated by society has increased drastically following the trends of population raise [1,2]. The production of waste materials is referred as the waste stream and includes the entire variety of refused waste from domestic, industrial, construction and commercial processes [3,4].…”