Medical waste, including hazardous liquids, solids, chemicals and sharp objects, must be removed and destroyed properly to avoid health and environmental risks. Methods include separation, sterilization, incineration, and shredding. Facilities such as hospitals rely on outside contractors for disposal. Regulations are in place in many countries to ensure safe removal.
Medical waste removal requires special care due to the highly hazardous nature of medical and biomedical waste. These types of waste can include hazardous liquids, solids, chemicals and sharp objects. Medical waste can potentially pose serious health and environmental risks if disposed of improperly. There are several successful and relatively safe methods for the removal and destruction of biohazardous materials, including separation into color-coordinated, labeled and sealed containers; steam sterilization; incineration; and shredding.
Medical waste originates mainly in places where diseases are treated and diagnosed or where humans and dead animals are handled. Typical locations where medical waste removal is routinely required include hospitals, hospice care facilities, morgues, laboratories, and veterinary offices. A facility often relies on outside contractors for the disposal and management of medical waste rather than trying to take care of it themselves.
Most medical waste removal methods must begin in the facilities where it is produced. Strict procedures are usually in place for initial containment of different types of hazardous materials, mostly involving their separation from other types of waste. Needles and other sharp objects, for example, must be collected in specially labeled and colored containers; the same goes for other biohazards such as carcasses, chemicals, toxins, and virus contaminations. This not only helps in disposing of items but also prevents cross-contamination of different forms of biohazards.
Cleaning and sterilizing reusable medical equipment is another form of medical waste removal. These are popular methods and allow continued safe use of expensive equipment. Cleaning methods include microwave sterilization, steam and chemical cleaning. Human blood, for example, can generally be poured into a normal sewer after being sterilized with steam.
Once collected, it is often necessary to destroy medical waste so that it cannot return to the environment. Incineration is a popular method of destroying medical waste, where it is introduced at extremely high temperatures and detoxified. However, this only applies to some types of medical waste; burning of some types can introduce other hazardous materials, such as mercury or dioxin, into the air. Similarly, sharp objects can be melted or shredded to reduce the risk of more dangerous situations and environmental accidents.
In many countries, hazardous waste removal is regulated by the government for the general safety and well-being of citizens. In the United States, for example, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) establishes regulations and guidelines for the safe removal, transportation and destruction of hazardous waste. In the UK, the Environment Agency provides such guidance.
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