Revolutionary Advances in Medical Waste Management. The Sanitec® System

Abstract

It is the purpose of this collective review to provide a detailed outline of a revolutionary medical waste disposal system that should be used in all medical centers in the world to prevent pollution of our planet from medical waste. The Sanitec medical waste disposal system consists of the following seven components: (1) an all-weather steel enclosure of the waste management system, allowing it to be used inside or outside of the hospital center; (2) an automatic mechanical lift-and-load system that protects the workers from devastating back injuries; (3) a sophisticated shredding system designed for medical waste; (4) a series of air filters including the High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter; (5) microwave disinfection of the medical waste material; (6) a waste compactor or dumpster; and (7) an onboard microprocessor. It must be emphasized that this waste management system can be used either inside or outside the hospital. From start to finish, the Sanitec Microwave Disinfection system is designed to provide process and engineering controls that assure complete disinfection and destruction, while minimizing the operator's exposure to risk. There are numerous technologic benefits to the Sanitec systems, including environmental, operational, physical, and disinfection efficiency as well as waste residue disinfection. Wastes treated through the Sanitec system are thoroughly disinfected, unrecognizable, and reduced in volume by approximately 80% (saving valuable landfill space and reducing hauling requirements and costs). They are acceptable in any municipal solid waste program. Sanitec's Zero Pollution Advantage is augmented by a complete range of services, including installation, startup, testing, training, maintenance, and repair, over the life of this system. The Sanitec waste management system has essentially been designed to provide the best overall solution to the customer, when that customer actually looks at the total cost of dealing with the medical waste issue. The Sanitec system is the right choice for healthcare and medical waste professionals around the world.

Microwave Technologies: An Emerging Tool for Inactivation of Biohazardous Material in Developing Countries

“…In principal there are two system designs for advanced microwave technologies: batch processes and semi-continuous microwave systems [3]. The Sanitec waste disposal system is an example for continuous microwave technology including a shredding system [30]. This system is intended rather for the treatment of large amounts of biomedical waste, which inherently leads to collection of the waste at sites where it is generated, transport, and inactivation at one single site.…”

Microwave as an emerging technology for the treatment of biohazardous waste: A mini-review

“…The Sanitec waste disposal system is based on continuous microwave technology, including a shredding system and air filters (Edlich et al, 2006). The first Sanitec system was installed at Forsyth Memorial Hospital, Winston-Salem, NC, USA in 1990 (Brewer, 1993).…”

Inactivation of Bacillus atrophaeus spores in healthcare waste by uv light coupled with H2O2

“…The use of microwaves to disinfect healthcare waste has been increasingly common in several countries (Edlich et al, 2006;Oliveira et al, 2010). Lee et al (2004) evaluated the costs of treatment and the final disposal of healthcare waste using incineration and microwave techniques.…”