Monkeypox virus transmission by sharps injury
Researchers from Brazil describe the clinical features of monkeypox virus (MPXV) infection in a 20-year-old nurse after a needlestick injury she sustained on July 9, 2022. The nurse was collecting […]
safety
Myanmar’s illegal trade in medical waste poses massive infection risk
Myanmar Now investigation finds waste collectors selling used syringes and intravenous drips to be made into household goods. Two garbage disposal workers spent half an hour rummaging through mounds of […]
Collection for unwanted medical equipment extended across recycling centres
People can return unwanted medical equipment to reuse and recycle. The collection amnesty for people to return unwanted medical equipment to reuse and recycle has been extended to larger household […]
NeedleSmart advertising claims
NeedleSmart claims that it is helping to reduce clinical waste in the UK. “According to a statement, British smart MedTech company, NeedleSmart, is at the forefront of helping the British […]
NHS ‘care hotels’ spark hygiene and safety concerns
Recent pressures on NHS bed space secondary to high admission rates of COVID-19 patients have resulted in the establishment of several ‘care hotels’ intended to relieve pressure on bed space […]
Healthcare Environmental Services trial to begin soon
Garry Pettigrew, the former boss of a clinical waste company faces trial over the alleged illegal storage of human body parts and other materials. It is also alleged that he […]
Needlesmart Partnership aims to reduce 100,000 needlestick injuries to NHS employees
In a 2003 survey, it was reported that a staggering 94 per cent of practising surgeons in the UK have either been personally affected by a needlestick injury (NSI) or […]
Major fire at Indian clinical waste plant
A major fire broke out at IMAGE, the bio-medical waste management plant of Indian Medical Association Kerala, at Kanjikode on Sunday. The fire was detected at noon and fire force […]
Businessman caught running £2.6m illegal waste racket
A wealthy businessman was caught running a £2.6million illegal waste racket where he buried toxic rubbish underground next to his Grade II-listed mansion. Homeowner Howard Rees, 65, and 53-year-old accomplice […]
Needle decap/recap, with a sting in the tail?
A new product from a Canadian company claims safely to facilitate decapping of hypodermic needles, if you really need a device to do that. Removing a needle cap is after […]
Waste Manager (NHS Trust)
Grundon are looking for an experienced Contract or Waste Manager to be based at Northwick Park Hospital, Harrow. Do you have at least five years’ experience as a Contract or […]
Locals worry about recycling plant’s plans to incinerate clinical waste
Some St Ives residents are unhappy about potentially toxic chemicals that could be pumped from the incinerator stack of a new and innovative clinical waste incinerator. A recycling plant near […]
Investigation after shipping container with used medical waste left unlocked
Stepping Hill Hospital bosses are investigating after an outdoor shipping container filled with used medical waste was left unlocked in the hospital grounds. Images sent to the Manchester Evening News show […]
Is Bellshill Industrial Estate the best place for a clinical waste plant?
Is Bellshill Industrial Estate the best place for a clinical/medical waste plant that went on fire? A councillor has written to the Scottish Government in a quest to effect the […]
Uncollected clinical waste in Calderdale, or is it?
Uncollected clinical waste in Calderdale ‘causing health and safety issues’ The COVID-19 pandemic has affected waste services of all kinds, but health and safety issues arise if clinical waste is not […]
Hospital Waste Porter
Yet another job opportunity! This time, it’s for a Hospital Waste Porter in Halifax. Job details Posting date: 20 July 2021 Salary: £8.91 per hour Hours: Full time Closing date: […]
Could Covid-19 clinical waste help slash Birmingham’s emissions?
Veolia’s energy recovery facility in Tyseley, Birmingham, will soon use waste from a massive NHS Test and Trace laboratory to produce green energy for the city. The resource management company has been […]
Blaze at Bellshill medical waste plant
Staff have been evacuated after a fire broke out at a plant which processes medical waste in North Lanarkshire. Firefighters were called to the site run by Tradebe Healthcare on […]
Government needs to urgently vaccinate waste operatives says waste management company
On the same theme as previous threads relating to Covid-19 infection responsible for the tragic death of two hospital porters, and claims of segregation and waste management deficiencies at vaccination […]
Staff absence forces company to make alternative arrangements for clinical waste collections from vaccination centres
A waste management company has been forced to make alternative arrangements for 15% of collections in London and South East England in the last week after ‘record numbers’ of drivers […]
Two hospital porters die of Covid-19 infection
The BBC report that a second hospital porter has sadly died from Covid-19 infection, the second Royal Stoke Hospital porter to die. Of course, this is terribly sad. Perhaps predictably […]
Stericycle settles with EPA on emissions accusation
Stericycle Inc. has reached a settlement with the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) designed to resolve alleged violations of the federal Clean […]
Hundreds of discarded hypodermic needles reported across Dundee and Angus
Hundreds of used needles are being found by shocked locals in Dundee and Angus every year as drug-related anti-social behaviour leaves residents living in fear. Data shows around 95% of the […]
School Covid-19 testing waste advice for contractors
Waste management contractors and similar businesses handling waste items from coronavirus testing in schools may be able to store the material if necessary, before moving it on for disposal treatment. […]
Incinerating specified healthcare wastes at a municipal waste incinerator
The Environment Agency has now published an update to its Regulatory Position Statement (RPS C23) entitled “Incinerating specified healthcare wastes at a municipal waste incinerator: RPS C23”. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/incinerating-specified-healthcare-wastes-at-a-municipal-waste-incinerator-rps-c23/incinerating-specified-healthcare-wastes-at-a-municipal-waste-incinerator-rps-c23 This COVID-19 […]
GPs claim clinical waste backlog prevents them seeing patients
GP practices in East Sussex have warned their CCG they will have to stop doing face-to-face appointments unless mounting amounts of clinical waste are urgently collected. Dr Russell Brown, a […]
Another healthcare waste-related fatality
Injuries involving healthcare wastes are fortunately uncommon but when they do occur they can be disastrous. Sharos injury and infections top the list but here is one that is, I […]
Wuhan novel coronavirus (WN-CoV) precautions
Public Health England’s (PHE) advice to primary care services on Wuhan novel coronavirus (WN-CoV) has been updated with guidance on environmental cleaning following a possible case. Whether that will work, […]
Helicopter slices roof off truck carrying hospital wastes
A police helicopter preparing to take off from a road in a Brazilian city was seriously damaged, and two of its occupants were injured, when a passing lorry came too […]
Regulator acts after potential ‘risk to human health’ at warehouse
Steps have been taken at a warehouse unlawfully filled with more than 400 tonnes of NHS clinical waste after the Environment Agency raised concerns over a potential “significant risk to […]