Principles of Medical Waste Management and Infection Control (Nursing)

00:01 Hi, I'm doctor Rhonda Laws.

00:02 Now, being familiar with principles of medical waste management can help you prevent the spread of infections where you work.

00:08 Now, numerous oversight and government agencies require healthcare organizations to follow specific procedures.

00:14 Not following them risks financial and legal complications and threatens the environment.

00:20 Now, before we can tell you what to do with medical waste, you first need to understand all the different kinds of materials that you may end up working with.

00:27 The first category of medical waste that most people know about is infectious waste.

00:32 This category includes any product contaminated with blood, bodily fluids, or other potentially infectious materials.

00:39 In the healthcare environment, this would be things like gloves, bandages, disposable tubing, and equipment that is grossly soiled with bodily fluids.

00:48 Now, needles, syringes, scalpels and other sharp objects that have been used with patients are grouped as sharps waste.

00:54 This type of waste is often found alongside pharmaceutical waste, which is expired or unused medications that are being discarded because they are not safe to be used.

01:04 Now, you might not think about the disinfectants we use to clean the healthcare environment unit itself as medical waste, but it does fall into the category of chemical waste, along with chemical solvents and laboratory chemicals.

01:15 This group would include all the cleaning supplies, as well as all the chemicals used to analyze samples in the lab.

01:22 There are even radioactive materials in healthcare facilities.

01:26 Radiologic exams such as a thyroid uptake exam, uses radioactive iodine, and many anticancer treatments also use radioactive materials.

01:36 The disposal of radioactive materials has a specific procedure like any other medical waste product.

01:43 And of course, there is general waste from patients like food wrappers, reading and packaging materials that need removal.

01:50 Your role as a health care team member may include removal of any of these categories.

01:55 So let's get started.

01:56 Knowing the procedures to keep the medical waste contained and you safe.

02:02 If you work somewhere with great resources, you will likely encounter the color coding system, which has been adopted worldwide.

02:08 The goal of this system is to allow for waste to be segregated into specific colors.

02:13 This prevents cross-contamination and ensures the bags get disposed of properly.

02:18 So red is infectious waste.

02:20 Yellow is pharmaceutical waste.

02:23 Blue is for sharps, and black or clear are for general waste.

02:27 Now, as a side note, the color coding system I'm describing here is the most commonly used, but not universal.

02:34 Different countries and regions may use alternative colors for the same categories of waste. Always follow your local or institutional guidelines to ensure you're compliant with the correct way.

02:44 Segregation procedures that are in your area.

02:48 For example, yellow is used in the Philippines for infectious waste, whereas in the United States, as we previously discussed, red typically serves this purpose for infectious waste.

02:58 So let's think about how this translates into waste disposal.

03:02 Red, yellow and blue bags would be sent for disposal at a licensed medical incineration site. Black or clear bags would be sent to a solid landfill site when appropriate.

03:12 Colored bags are used, labeled correctly, and everyone knows the rules.

03:17 Everything goes where it's supposed to go.

03:19 Now, if you don't have access to colored bags, then sorting and labeling will be the next appropriate action.

03:24 It's especially important to segregate sharps waste into containers that are puncture resistant.

03:29 That's so that during the disposal transport, no one is accidentally punctured.

03:35 If you have access to them, all needles and sharp objects should go into red waste puncture resistant containers.

03:42 If you don't have these, use the strongest plastic container you can find and label it clearly. As you place needles and sharps into these containers.

03:51 Do not recap the needles as this greatly increases your risk of accidental needle sticks. Now, in addition to the color coding waste segregation system, wearing appropriate personal protective equipment is also important.

04:05 Think about when you've emptied your trash at home.

04:08 Sometimes things splash or they move.

04:10 Wearing gloves for everything is a great idea.

04:13 Wearing a mask and gown, if there's any chance there could be a splash is an even better idea. Now, shoe protectors aren't a bad idea either if you have access to them.

04:23 So that wraps up this discussion of waste management in the healthcare environment.

04:27 Now, your local site may have additional policies and procedures for you to follow, and these will be based on what disposable resources are available.