War of words
In the on-going war of words between pro-life protesters and registered US abortion clinics, it seems there are no limits to the extent of criticism and guilt by association. Some time ago, […]
waste treatment
Panda poo
There has been much news about the two giant pandas recently arrived at Edinburgh Zoo on loan from China. We must give them a warm welcome. For the next 6 months, […]
Cremation – who gets the gold?
Gold prices are riding high. With an eye, if not a tooth, on profit nine South Koreans have been arrested for stealing, selling and buying melted gold teeth from cremation […]
USAID study, Namibia
USAID has published a resume of result from an interventional study of waste management in Namibia. Make your own minds up. Though a massive improvement in standards is claimed, from only […]
Dental clinic failures
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has reported that West Street Dental Practice in Congleton is not meeting the essential standard and must improve. Key failures were in cleanliness and infection […]
Confidential paper disposal
“Confidential patient details were thrown out in the wrong bin at Peterborough City Hospital, breaching data laws. “An investigation has been launched by Peterborough and Stamford Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust […]
Including waste management in service planning
It often seems that waste management is a last minute add-in to most management plans. An irritating afterthought which sits uncomfortably with established operations, planning of new or reconfigured services […]
Ireland cleans up another illegal dump
Lawyers representing Wicklow County Council have informed the High Court of the council’s intention to begin the clean up of a large illegal dump in West Wicklow. The dump, at […]
Managing Norovirus infection wastes
New guidelines are hot off the press regarding the management of Norovirus infection in acute and community health and social care settings. Those guidelines, prepared after collaboration between the British […]
Are old ideas the best?
Old ideas are often the best, and in the case of clinical waste treatment from sources at University College Hospital London that is undoubtedly true. Many laboratories produce vast quantities […]
Novel contraption for Vietnam clinical wastes
A clinical waste incinerator built by a local farmer may not be totally efficient and pollution free but it’s churning through waste that was otherwise dangerous and time consuming to […]
Tissue waste disposal
More on the case of the widow of a US army soldier who died in combat and from whom some body parts once recovered after the incident and from immediate […]
“Hospital incinerator contaminates patients”
A Namibian news report tells that “every morning a huge cloud of black smoke soars from the chimneys of a small corrugated iron building next to the Katutura State Hospital […]
Wide variation in clinical waste management practice
In the UN Report of the Special Rapporteur on the adverse effects of the movement and dumping of toxic and dangerous products and wastes on the enjoyment of human rights, […]
US sending its hospital waste to other countries?
A news bulletin reports that Brazil recently received two containers with 45 tons of illegal hospital waste from the US. Inspectors found bed sheets, dressing gowns, pillowcases, aprons, and diapers, along […]
Secure disposal of anaesthetic and related drug waste
It is almost invariable that, in the anaesthetic room, the operating theatre, in the Intensive Care and Neonatal Units, in A&E and occasionally in the Imaging Department, controlled drugs and […]
Mobile waste gasification units for military applications
Plasma arc gasification is an exciting technology that provides complete destruction of complex waste streams with massive volume reduction. The importance to military operations is substantial as waste management is […]
Acknowledging adverse health effects of military burn pits
Legislation introduced in the House would require the Veterans Affairs Department to create a register for veterans who have health problems they believe are related to exposure to open-air burn […]
Illegal medical waste dump sites cleared
“The four illegal medical waste dumping sites in and around Welkom have been cleared and rehabilitated, according to the National Environmental Compliance and Enforcement Report (NECER) 2010/11 released on Thursday. […]
Sharps Terminator
They seem to have been around for years now, sharps destruction devices that snip, snap or burn off the metal sharp from plastic needle hub to provide alternate sharps disposal […]
Placenta recipes
Disposal of placentas is a costly and troublesome undertaking. The numbers are vast. With around 720,000 live births per annum, and a full term placenta weighing around 0.45kg, that is […]
Scavengers united!
On the Clinical Waste Discussion Forum we have previously commented on the fate of rag pickers and other scavengers salvaging items from untreated medical waste and facilitating is repackaging for […]
Prescription drug round-up collects over 250,000 pills
It’s easy done, and very effective. Though there is rapidly increasing concern about teh presence of pharmaceutical residues in wastewater, and thereby in natural waters, little seems to be done […]
Single use vs reusable sharps containers
In a carefully managed PR release, information of a presentation given at a Chicago environmental meeting reports a claim of reduced CO2 emission and lowered environmental impact from reusable sharps disposal […]
Environment Agency – Consultation on charges for 2012 to 2015
The Environment Agency are opening a consultation on their charges for 2012 to 2015. The consultation covers charging proposals for Environmental Permitting, abstraction and Emissions Trading charging schemes from 2012-2015. EA […]
Indian hospital troubled by broken incinerator
News in The times of India that a hospital in Kanpur is presently suffering the consequences of a broken incinerator. Though it is officially disputed, clinical wastes are being burned […]
Superbugs escape through hospital sewers
Antibiotic-resistant pathogens born in hospitals may enter the wider environment through the facilities’ sewers, although the magnitude of the danger remains unclear. A team from the Federal University of Saõ […]
Wastewater treatment to remove pharma residues
The removal of pharma residues from waste treatment process waters or more generally from wastewaters from hospitals and nursing homes, from intensive agricultural facilities and perhaps even from community wastewater […]
Local Authority ‘dumps’ clinical waste collections
Ashfield District Council has upset at least one resident by ‘dumping’ clinical waste collections from most households. Over the last five years, one 43 year old resident who spends nine […]
Healthcare waste management – a global perspective
UN investigator says medical waste mostly unregulated, often dumped illegally, risks ignored “The Washington Post today quotes a human rights investigator for the United Nations who says up to a quarter of […]