There has, for some considerable time, been considerable interest in the re-processing for re-use of single-use medical equipment and devices. If reprocessing is undertaken with sufficient care to provide a safe and effective […]
GreenBiz.com is questioning the suitability of new US laws that will require pharmaceutical manufacturers to make a financial contribution to disposal of their products. “Officials in Alameda County, California are breaking new […]
“A young woman stole a sharps box from Hackettstown Regional Medical Center and removed needles and medications from it, police said. “On Aug 24 at about 4:53 am police were […]
Blood splashes and smears are common on the external surfaces of sharps bins. Occurring mostly when sharps attached to a short length of plastic tubing, or an entire infusion set […]
The Bac Kan-based Hoa Tu Long Industry Company officially put the medical waste incinerator (YT30) into operation. This is the first high-tech incinerator made in Vietnam. The incinerator has the capacity of […]
Concerns have been reported of hygiene worries about the Royal Free Hospital after cockroach, rat and feral pigeon sightings. We should not be particularly surprised as these problems are really not uncommon within hospitals, either […]
The Healthcare Plastics Recycling Council (HPRC) has finalized an agreement with Stanford University Medical Center to begin a six-month pilot study to develop a better understanding of plastic waste characterization within healthcare facilities. […]
Perhaps surprisingly, GPs have for years received cash supplements for the disposal of trade waste as part of their contracts with PCTs. Their enjoyment of this welcome uplift in funding, which […]
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has published guidance on the safe use of industrial autoclaves, which can be used to treat waste. The guidance ‘Safety requirements for autoclaves’, addresses […]
Last updated: Thursday, August 9, 2012
By analyzing wastewaters for a range of urinary biomarkers, it is possible to reliably detect drug abuse patterns in cities. The findings of a comparative study of illegal drug consumption in […]
A few minutes away from the main Peshawar hospitals, children rummage through trash, collecting used syringes, sharp blades and blood bags. These children are gathering medical waste from garbage dumps […]
A Los Angeles hospital has agreed through plea bargaining to a $73,000 fine after allegations of unlawful disposal of medical (clinical) waste from one of its medical centers. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals South Bay […]
The US FDA is hosting a webinar “Safe Disposal of Medications and Sharps in the Home Setting” on August 23, 2012 at 13:00-14:00 eastern time. The webinar is part of […]
It is far too easy to believe that the safe management of healthcare waste is something of a done deal, with improvement required only in cost minimization and resource recovery […]
A vet has been fined for illegally dumping sacks full of medical waste contaminated with blood. On June 23, 2011, five black sacks containing syringes, drug bottles and articles contaminated with […]
Advertising flimflam is part of the way of things these days, and we all take it with a generous pinch of salt. In the UK, claims have to be compliant with […]
Norovirus outbreaks continue to be a major seasonal problem and cause huge disruption to care services with substantial morbidity and mortality. What to do with Norovirus waste? Much waste will be destined for the toilet […]
The Environment Agency has issued an example hospital waste audit plan and report format. There is no requirement to use this particular format but it is expected to demonstrate an effective approach to conducting this […]
Refrigerating clinical wastes is something that occasionally appears on the UK agenda but is rightly dismissed as an unnecessary energy expenditure (though with global warming perhaps things will change). However, […]
The IRS has seized about 20 tons of garbage sent from Spain to Brazil. The waste was in a container at the port of Itajai, approximately 60 miles from Florianopolis. The load contains dirty […]
By analysing the pharmaceutical waste produced by eight operating rooms, an anaesthetist in New York found that discarded or wasted propofol made up 45% of all the drug waste. Future wastage […]
The Sharps Terminator is a new(ish) product that is to all intents a reworking of slightly older technologies which aimed to put sharps destruction onto the desktop. We have discussed these […]
Saskatoon is in the middle of nowhere – quite literally, it is located in the most central part of Canada and has few, if any, close neighbours. This makes a particularly […]
Packaging Today reports that UK-based Cromwell Polythene is relaunching its clinical waste sacks range, using ‘star seal’ technology to maximise carrying capacity, while optimising leak resistance. The range makes use of […]
News of another pilot program to recycle hospital gloves and non-woven polypropylene gowns, garments and disposable curtains, this time in the US. These initiatives are worthy of support though presently […]
It is becoming increasingly common to downplay or overlook completely the possibility of bloodborne virus infection after sharps injury or other blood or bloodstained body fluid exposure. The low incidence of […]
A national cleaning company has been fined £175,000 after a hospital porter was killed by an industrial waste compactor in Bolton. The man’s neck was broken when the lid on the large […]
We have discussed on the Clinical Waste Discussion Forum, over many years, the problem of drug residues in the environment. It is an issue in which we stand very much […]
ScienceDaily reports that large quantities of antibiotic-resistant bacteria enter the environment via municipal – and especially hospital – wastewater streams. Although wastewater treatment plants reduce the total number of bacteria, the most hazardous […]