Healthcare waste management

Antibiotics, cytotoxins (which are toxic to cells and inhibit cell growth and multiplication), corrosive chemicals, and radioactive substances used in modern hospitals and health care institutions ultimately become part of health care wastes (HCW). HCWs include general waste or municipal solid waste, e.g., packaging materials, food scraps, newspapers, bottles, and hazardous HCW. Classification of wastes varies depending on national/local regulations. Waste generation depends on numerous factors such as established waste management methods, type of health care establishment, hospital specializations, proportion of reusable items employed in health care, and proportion of patients treated on a daily basis. The key to minimization and effective management of HCW is segregation (separation) and identification of the waste. Establishment of a sustainable health care waste management system benefits from a national legal framework that regulates and organizes different elements of a health care waste management system.