For Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules 2016 and Amendment 2018 refer Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules 2016 and Amendment 2018
What is bio-medical waste?
Bio-medical waste is any solid or liquid waste including its container and any intermediate product generated during the diagnosis, treatment or immunization of human beings or animals or research activities.
Bio-medical waste means any waste, which is generated during the diagnosis, treatment or immunization of human beings or animals or research activities pertaining thereto or in the production or testing of biological or in health camps.
What does bio-medical waste consists of?
Bio-Medical waste includes all the waste generated from the Health Care Facility which can have any adverse effect to the health of a person or to the environment in general if not disposed properly. All such waste which can adversely harm the environment or health of a person is considered as infectious and such waste has to be managed as per BMWM Rules, 2016.
Bio Medical waste generally consists of human anatomical waste like organs, tissues and body parts, waste sharps like hypodermic needles, syringes, scalpels and broken glass, discarded medicines and cytotoxic drugs, liquid waste from any of infected areas etc.
Why does biomedical waste poses hazard?
Biomedical waste poses hazard due to two principal reasons – toxicity and infectivity.
It leads to land/soil pollution along with contamination of water including groundwater.
It also pollutes the rivers due to its ultimate discharge in river that too without proper treatment.
Improper disposal increases risk of infection; encourages recycling of prohibited disposables and disposed drugs; and develops resistant microorganisms.
What are the different categorises of bio-medical waste?
Bio Medical Waste Management Rules, 2016 categorises the bio-medical waste generated from the health care facility into four categories based on the segregation pathway and colour code.
1. Yellow Category 2. Red Category 3. White Category 4. Blue Category
Various types of bio medical waste are further assigned to each one of the categories, as detailed below:
CATEGORY – YELLOW
TYPE OF WASTE
Human Anatomical Waste : Human tissues, organs, body parts and fetus below the viability period (as per the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act 1971, amended from time to time).
Animal Anatomical Waste: Experimental animal carcasses, body parts, organs, tissues, including the waste generated from animals used in experiments or testing in veterinary hospitals or colleges or animal houses.
Soiled Waste: Items contaminated with blood, body fluids like dressings, plaster casts, cotton swabs and bags containing residual or discarded blood and blood components.
Discarded or Expired Medicine: Pharmaceutical waste like antibiotics, cytotoxic drugs including all items contaminated with cytotoxic drugs along with glass or plastic ampoules, vials etc.
Chemical Waste: Chemicals used in production of biological and used or discarded disinfectants
Chemical Liquid Waste: Liquid waste generated due to use of chemicals in production of biological and used or discarded disinfectants, Silver X – ray film developing liquid, discarded Formalin, infected secretions, aspirated body fluids , liquid from laboratories and floor washings, cleaning, house – keeping and disinfecting activities etc.
Discarded linen, mattresses, beddings contaminated with blood or body fluid, routine mask & gown.
Microbiology, Biotechnology and other clinical laboratory waste (Pre-treated) Microbiology.
Biotechnology and other clinical laboratory waste: Blood bags, Laboratory cultures, stocks or specimens of microorganisms, live or attenuated vaccines, human and animal cell cultures used in research, industrial laboratories, production of biological, residual toxins, dishes and devices used for cultures.
CATEGORY – RED
TYPE OF WASTE
Wastes generated from disposable items such as tubing, bottles, intravenous tubes and sets, catheters, urine bags, syringes without needles, fixed needle syringes with their needles cut, vaccutainers and gloves
CATEGORY – WHITE
TYPE OF WASTE
Waste Sharps including metals Needles, syringes with fixed needles, needles from needle tip cutter or burner, scalpels, blades, or any other contaminated sharp object that may cause puncture and cuts.
This includes both used, discarded and contaminated metal sharps
CATEGORY – BLUE
TYPE OF WASTE
Broken or discarded and contaminated glass including medicine vials and ampoules except those contaminated with cytotoxic wastes.
Who is responsible for Bio-medical Waste Management?
Steps involved in Bio-medical Waste Management First five steps (Segregation, Collection, pre-treatment, Intramural Transportation and Storage) is the exclusive responsibility of Health Care Facility.
While Treatment and Disposal is primarily responsibility of CBWTF (Common Bio Medical Waste Treatment Facility) operator except for lab and highly infectious waste, which is required to be pre-treated by the HCF (Health Care Facility).
