A report on
Biomedical Waste
Managemnet
Biomedical Waste Management
1. Introduction
Hospital is one of the complex institutions which is frequented by people from every walk of life
in the society without any distinction between age, sex, race and religion. This is over and above
the normal inhabitants of hospital i.e. patients and staff. All of them produce waste which is
increasing in its amount and type due to advances in scientific knowledge and is creating its
impact. The hospital waste, in addition to the risk for patients and personnel who handle these
wastes poses a threat to public health and environment.
Keeping in view inappropriate biomedical waste management, the Ministry of Environment and
Forests (MoEF), Government of India, notified the “Biomedical Waste (management and
handling) Rules, 1998” on 20th July 1998 which provides uniform guidelines and code of practice
for the whole nation. In accordance with these Rules (Rule 4), it is the duty of every “occupier”
i.e. a person who has the control over the institution and or its premises, to take all steps to ensure
that waste generated is handled without any adverse effect to human health and environment. The
hospitals, nursing homes, clinic, dispensary, animal house, pathological lab etc., are therefore
required to set in place the biological waste treatment facilities. It is however not incumbent that
every institution has to have its own waste treatment facility. The rules also envisage that
common facility or any other facilities can be used for waste treatment. However it is incumbent
on the occupier to ensure that the waste is treated within a period of 48 hours.
2. Biomedical Waste Management (BMW) Process
Definition: ‘Biomedical waste’ means any solid and/or liquid waste including its container and
any intermediate product, which is generated during the diagnosis, treatment or immunization of
human beings or animals or in research pertaining thereto or in the production or testing thereof.
The physico-chemical and biological nature of these components, their toxicity and potential
hazards are different, necessitating different methods/options for their treatment/disposal.
Schedule I of the Bio-medical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 1998, therefore
indicates the waste originating from different kinds of such establishments, and categorizes them
into 10 different categories and specifies their treatment and disposal options.
The key to minimization and effective management of biomedical waste is segregation
(separation) and identification of the waste. The most appropriate way of identifying the
categories of biomedical waste is by sorting the waste into colour coded plastic bags or
containers. Biomedical waste should be segregated into containers/ bags at the point of generation
in accordance with Schedule II of the above Rules, as given in Table 1 below.
Table 1: Colour coding - Biomedical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 1998
Colour Conding Type of Contain
Yellow Plastic bag
Source: Ministry of Environment & Forests
General waste like garbage, garden refuse etc. should join the stream of domestic refuse. Sharps
should be collected in puncture proof containers. Bags and containers for infectious waste should
Red Disinfected
be marked with Biohazard symbol. Highly infectious waste should be sterilized by autoclaving.
Cytotoxic wastes are to be collected in leak proof containers clearly labeled as cytotoxic waste.
container/plastic b
Needles and syringes should be destroyed with the help of needle destroyer and syringe cutters
provided at the point of generation. Infusion sets, bottles and gloves should be cut with curved
scissors.
Blue/White translucent Plastic bag/punctu
Disinfection of sharps, soiled linen, plastic and rubber goods is to be achieved at point of
generation by usage of sodium hypochlorite with minimum contact of 1 hour. Fresh solution
should be made in each shift. On site collection requires staff to close the waste bags when they
are three quarters full either by tying the neck or by sealing the bag. Kerb side storage area needs
Black Plastic bag
to be impermeable and hard standing with good drainage. It should provide an easy access to
waste collection vehicle.
Biomedical waste should be transported within the hospital by means of wheeled trolleys,
containers or carts that are not used for any other purpose. The trolleys have to be cleaned daily.
Off site transportation vehicle should be marked with the name and address of carrier. Biohazard
symbol should be painted. Suitable system for securing the load during transport should be
ensured. Such a vehicle should be easily cleanable with rounded corners.
All disposable plastic should be subjected to shredding before disposing off to vendor. Final
treatment of biomedical waste can be done by technologies like incineration, autoclave,
hydroclave or microwave.
Cost: The cost of construction, operation and maintenance of system for managing biomedical
waste represents a significant part of overall budget of a hospital if the BMW handling rules 1998
have to be implemented in their true spirit. Govt of India in its pilot project for hospital waste
management in Govt hospitals has estimated Rs.85 lakh as capital cost in 1000 bedded super
speciality teaching hospital which includes on site final disposal of BMW. Two types of costs are
required to be incurred by hospitals for BMW management, internal and external. Internal cost is
the cost for segregation, mutilation, disinfection, internal storage and transportation including
hidden cost of protective equipment. External cost involves off site transport of waste, treatment
and final disposal.
3. Linkage of Bio-medical Waste Management with Municipal Waste Management
At present, the role of the civic body with respect to the management of bio-medical waste is not
clearly defined, leading to confusion and laxity from either side.
• Since majority of the health care establishments are located within the municipal area,
their waste management naturally has a close linkage with the municipal system. At the
same time, the civic authority is responsible for public health in the whole of the
municipal area. Therefore, the health care establishments must have a clear understanding
with the municipality regarding sharing of responsibilities associated with this issue.
• Studies have shown that about three fourth of the total hospital waste is not hazardous /
infected (provided strict segregation is practised) and can even be taken care of by the
municipal waste management system, e.g., waste generated at the hospital kitchen or
garden, the office or packaging material from the store etc.
• Such practices of strict and careful segregation would reduce the load and the cost of
management of the actually hazardous and infected bio-medical waste (collection,
transportation, treatment and disposal)
• Since, it would not be possible for each and every health care establishment to have its
own full fledged treatment and disposal system for bio-medical waste, there would be
need for common treatment and disposal facilities under the ownership / supervision /
guidance of the civic authority.
From the above mentioned issues, it is clear that the success of the biomedical waste management
program depends on proper in-house management (within the health care establishment) and co-
ordination and co-operation amongst the various establishments themselves as well as with the
civic authority.
4. Environmental Concerns
The following are the main environmental concerns with respect to improper disposal of bio-
medical waste management:
• Spread of infection and disease through vectors (fly, mosquito, insects etc.) which affect
the in -house as well as surrounding population.
• Spread of infection through contact/injury among medical/non-medical personnel and
sweepers/rag pickers, especially from the sharps (needles, blades etc.).
• Spread of infection through unauthorised recycling of disposable items such as
hypodermic needles, tubes, blades, bottles etc.
• Reaction due to use of discarded medicines.
• Toxic emissions from defective/inefficient incinerators.
• Indiscriminate disposal of incinerator ash / residues.
5. Current Status and Issues
It’s been more than a decade since Biomedical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules have
been adopted by India, but there is no sign of any proper mechanism of disposing bio-medical
wastes in the hospitals including the premier Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS).
According to a recent study conducted by IIM-L, evaluating the Central Pollution Control Board
(CPCB), half the bio-medical waste generated in the country's hospitals is just dumped with
municipal garbage, without any special treatment. Each day, more than 4.2 lakh kg of biomedical
waste is generated in the country, but there are only 157 facilities qualified to treat the waste. As
a result, only 2.4 lakh kg is actually treated. In institutional terms, an inventory showed that of the
84,809 hospitals and healthcare facilities in India, only 48,183 are using either common
biomedical waste treatment facilities or have engaged private agencies to treat their waste.
Mayapuri scrap market: The recent incident of radioactive emissions (Cobalt-60) in the
Mayapuri scraps market of Delhi highlights the government’s callous and lax attitude towards
managing radioactive waste. The incident left seven people seriously ill from radiation exposure,
and killed one. This incident highlighted how weak the regulatory shield around radioactive
material is. India has only itself to blame for lax attitude towards the radioactive waste chain. Our
enormous recycling market, which hunts and melts these metals to recast and sell, is largely
unmonitored at each connection.
Indian and UNIDO: In February 2010 India and the United Nations Industrial Development
Organization (UNIDO) have joined hands to implement a $40 million pilot project for managing
the country’s health care system effectively and dispose of hazardous medical waste. The project
was signed between UNIDO and MoEF and would be implemented in states like Gujarat,
Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Punjab, with M.S. Ramaiah Medical College (Bangalore)
acting as the national implementation body.
6. Conclusion
With a judicious planning, management and implementation, the risk can be considerably
reduced. Studies have shown that about three fourth of the total waste generated in health care
establishments is non-hazardous and non-toxic. Some estimates put the infectious waste at 15%
and other hazardous waste at 5%. Therefore with a rigorous regime of segregation at source, the
problem can be reduced proportionately. Similarly, with better planning and management, not
only the waste generation is reduced, but overall expenditure on waste management can be
controlled. Proper training of health care establishment personnel at all levels coupled with
sustained motivation can improve the situation considerably.
References:
Lt. Col. Rao SKM et al. “Biomedical Waste Management: An Infrastructural Survey of
Hospitals”.
Ministry of Environment & Forests Notification S.O. 630 (E), 20th July 1998, New Delhi
“Bio-Medical Waste Management”, Parivesh, Central Pollution Control Board
Razdan Priti, Cheema Amarjit Singh, “Bio-Medical Waste Management System”
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