Chennai: Every day, hospitals in the city, including private ones and public health centres (PHCs), generate approximately 10,000 kg of bio-medical waste collected in colour coded bags.
While the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital (RGGGH) generates around 300 kg a day, corporate hospitals generate nearly double that amount. Leading healthcare provider Apollo Hospital on Greams Road generates around 1,000 kg of bio-medical waste. Effective disposal of this waste thus poses a huge problem for the Pollution Control Board.
“Initially, a pilot project was launched in three districts in 2007 to segregate the waste to prevent infectious diseases, and by 2010, all hospitals, including PHCs, secondary and tertiary care hospitals, followed the same system,” explained former dean of RGGGH Dr Kanagasabai.
Until 2007, there was no effective segregation of infectious and non-infectious waste. “About 85 per cent of general waste is non-infectious. When both are dumped at the same place chances of infection are more,” a senior doctor with a government hospital said. Now, there was greater awareness among doctors, nursing and paramedic staff, with education being given to them, he added.
The work of the hospital does not, however, stop with imparting education on segregating waste, but also ensuring that properly colour-coded bags are used, said Sudha Mohan, senior manager (housekeeping) at Apollo Hospitals, yellow bags for infectious waste, bandages, cotton or any other objects in contact with bodily fluids, human body parts and placenta; red bags for plastic waste, such as catheters, injections, syringes, tubing and IV bottles; and blue bags for all types of glass bottles and broken glass articles, outdated and discarded medicines.
“The waste, collected from each ward or operating theatre, should be taken to the common area and from there, the vendor takes charge of disposing of it. Vehicle movements are traced to ensure that the waste is properly dumped. We conduct an audit often. Some of the waste is incinerated and used needles are cut to prevent reuse,” she said.
Even five-bed hospitals now segregate bio-medical waste, but a cause for concern are clinics, which generate only half kg of bio-medical waste. “The Indian Medical Association (IMA) is planning to raise awareness among these clinics about proper waste disposal. We have suggested that they use needle destroyers,” said Dr. C. Anbarasu, IMA member.
Members of the IMA claimed that there are two hazardous waste disposal facilities for the Chennai region which take care of the safe disposal of a huge quantity of bio-medical waste.
