€10,000 for needle ‘scare’
A toddler who may have suffered a needlestick injury while playing in a medical centre, has been awarded €10,000. In September 2007, 18-month-old Callum Wynne and his brother had been in the […]
syringe disposal
Free webinar on sharps safety in non-hospital settings
The International Healthcare Worker Safety Center is sponsoring a free webinar on a much overlooked topic: “Achieving Sharps Safety Compliance in Non-Hospital Healthcare Settings.” Last updated: Sunday, October 10, 2021
Are safety sharp devices really safe?
A couple of years ago, when the talk about the potential of safety sharp devices in reducing sharps injuries I had a wager with a good friend, that the incidence […]
Syringe horror for Aussie gardener
Yet another regional news report, this time from Australia’s Sunshine Coast, of a sharps injury from a needle discarded into undergrowth garden borders of a holiday complex and lost in […]
Clinical waste, or evidence?
Clinical waste is usually sent for disposal without delay and there is every chance that Roger Clemens, a US baseball pitcher otherwise known as “Rocket” wished that disposal was indeed prompt! […]
High prevalence of HIV, Hep B, Hep C in IV drug users
Today’s BMJ carries a short report of the World Drug Report, launched at the UN headquarters in New York where the UN’s secretary general Ban Ki-moon, said that illicit drugs cause some […]
Stericycle hits sharps container recycling milestone
More than 100 million sharps containers have been kept out of landfills through Stericycle’s sharps management service, the company announced. The sharps management program began in 1986. Stericycle containers are […]
BBV transmission
The estimated rate of BBV transmission after sharps injury is widely publicised. For Hepatitis B Virus infections the risk is around 30%, for Hepatitis C 3% and for HIV infections around 0.3% risk. […]
Taking glass out of pathology wastes
The vast majority of pathology laboratory waste can be recycled. It contains a high proportion of plastic and with the exception of glass, not much else. That glass fraction is […]
Sharps waste recycling
Sharps waste recycling, and indeed recycling of materials including ATT-processed plastics, latex and metals from non-sharps waste must be an environmentally sound option when compared with incineration alone. It is […]
Will safety sharps eliminate disposal-related sharps injury?
US and other legislation mandates introduction of engineered safety sharp devices within a year and already there has been wide uptake. Similar European legislation applies through Council Directive 2010/32/EU but […]
Hazardous waste?
What is this? It looks genuine. Even the package looks convincing and seen in some general waste or on a picking line could bring things to a standstill. Last updated: […]
Protection in law
It is now 9 months or so since a Northern Ireland hospital worker who suffered a sharps injury while handling a bag of clinical waste and feared life-threatening infection will be […]
What does Sharps Injury sound like?
Several times before on the Clinical Waste Discussion Forum we have mentioned the ‘tune’ Infectious Medical Waste by the group Demolition Hammer. And now, we bring you the sound of […]
European Safety Network – Prevention from Sharps Injuries toolkit
European Safety Network Toolkit for Implementation of European Directive on Prevention from Sharps Injuries (Council Directive 2010/32/EU) in Member States Last updated: Sunday, January 22, 2017
Prevention of Sharps Injuries in Healthcare information sheet
A nice new (March 2011) information sheet, Prevention of Sharps Injuries in Healthcare, from the Health and Safety Authority, Ireland, addresses many of the basic practicalities and the implications of Council Directive […]
Charged – Failing to dispose of a syringe
A short news report from Australia tells a sorry tale of a police office suffering a sharps injury during a drug raid. The syringe was alleged to have been used […]
Reporting of sharps injury – will Council Directive 2010/32/EU help?
Recent reports from New Zealand and Ireland report underreporting of sharps injuries in around one third of doctors and nurses respectively. This is in accord with the many other studies […]
Sharps-related infections
We have previously discussed the wide diversity of infections that can be transmitted by sharps or needlestick injury. Last updated: Sunday, October 13, 2019
Needles discarded into recycling bins
Even a single discarded needle turning up in a recycling bin or found on a picking line can bring things to a shuddering halt. Yet more seriously, it can cause […]
University installs sharps bins in toilets
The University of Iowa is to install needle-deposit bins in restrooms across its campus. Facilities Management will now foot the $9,000 bill for purchasing and installing the containers. Though dressing […]
Trying to help brings only frustration
A sobering report from Total Essex tells of a Chelmsford couple who must feel like banging their heads against the nearest availlable brick wall. Last updated: Wednesday, August 31, 2016
Warning after needlestick injury
“Terrified mum-of-four has warned others to be alert after a discarded hypodermic needle got stuck in her hand while she was gardening. ” The woman, who wished to remain anonymous but […]
Sharps disposal training
For the very many home sharps users in the UK instruction in safe sharps disposal is limited or non-existent. Indeed, many users are provided with sharps and no method for […]
Recycling deal for medical sharps waste
BD, one of the world’s largest sharps and syringe manufacturers, and Waste Management plan a joint venture to recycle medical sharps waste from hospitals. The companies are jointly launching the […]
Sharps theft
Sharps bins are attractive to addicts. They contain needles and syringes, and where drug disposal is less good may contain narcotic analgesics and other controlled drugs conveniently drawn up in […]
Penalty for dumping used needle “grossly inadequate”
Dumping used needles, in playgrounds, parks, alleyways or wherever puts lives at risk, generates fear among communities and lowers property values. In every way, it is unacceptable behavior. Last updated: […]
Hygiene precautions for waste handlers
Blenkharn Environmental has considerable experience in the audit and assessment of biosafety and hygiene precautions for waste handlers. Embracing safety enhancements for all of those involved in the generation of a diverse range […]
Collecting spilled clinical waste
Collecting spilled or misplaced clinical wastes that may arise somewhere between producer and waste management contractor – perhaps that stray yellow or orange sack sitting on the highway forelornely awaiting collection, the bag blown […]
Sharps by post
The Clinical Waste Discussion Forum has discussed on many occasions the disposal of sharps using a postal return service (see Archive files). Last updated: Sunday, August 8, 2021