The County Government of Nakuru has warned that garbage collectors handling medical waste without following proper disposal procedures will be subjected to criminal prosecution.
The devolved unit’s administration has affirmed that the public will not be put to risks out of ignorance by garbage collectors and medical practitioners who do not observe proper procedures in disposing hospital waste.
Health care waste consists of a broad range of materials, from used needles and syringes to medical devices, body parts, soiled dressings, diagnostic samples, blood, chemicals, pharmaceuticals and radioactive materials.
Medical waste includes all the waste produced in health care facilities, research centers and laboratories related to medical procedures.
County Environment Chief Officer, Mr Kimani Kuria, while disclosing that a joint operation between the devolved unit, the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), public health, and environment officers, had nabbed a man suspected to be behind the massive illegal dumping of medical waste at the Giotto dumpsite, noted that incorrect disposal of the waste can harm patients, health workers, local communities and is a hazard in the environment.
“The suspect is believed to be an employee of a company formerly operating under a different name but which rebranded following allegations of illegal activities. He is expected to be arraigned in court,” stated Mr Kuria.
He added, “We remind the public that transporting medical waste without a valid permit is an offense under Section 91(5) and (6) of the Environmental Management and Coordination Act (EMCA) 1999 (Amendment 2015). Disposing of such waste at unauthorized sites also contravenes Section 29(11) (d) and Section 30(7) of the Nakuru County Public Health and Sanitation Act 2017.”
The Chief Officer observed that medical waste contains hazardous materials, including infectious agents, sharp objects, and toxic chemicals, posing severe risks to public health and the environment.
Mr Kuria warned that improper disposal of medical waste can lead to the spread of diseases, contamination of water sources, and harm to waste handlers and wildlife.
“Health care waste is also a source of potentially dangerous micro-organisms and there are many different kinds of exposure through injury (cut, prick), contact with the skin mucous membranes, inhalation and ingestion,” he elaborated.
The World Health Organization (WHO) divides medical waste into five categories according to the risks involved. In the first category are sharps, which are waste that entails risk of injury.
In the second group are wastes that involves risk of contamination like blood, secretion or excreta as well as anatomical such as body parts and tissues, and cultures of infectious agents, including refuse from infectious patients placed in isolation wards.
Some waste in this category does not necessary pose a health or environmental risk but must be treated as special waste for ethical or cultural reasons.
The third class is pharmaceutical, cytotoxic, chemical waste and those containing heavy metals. In this category are spilled/unused or expired medicines and used medication receptacles, left over cytotoxic drugs (used to destroy cancer drugs).
Also included are used batteries, mercury waste (broken thermometers or manometers, fluorescent or compact fluorescent light tubes) as well as discarded laboratory solvents, disinfectants, photographic developers and fixers.
The fourth classification consists of pressurized containers like gas cylinders and aerosol cans, while the fifth is radioactive waste which contains radioactive substances including radionuclides used in laboratories or nuclear medicine, urine or excreta of patients treated.
The Environment Chief Officer indicated that handlers of medical waste are required to sort and collect them in different containers or plastic bags that are colour coded and/or marked with a symbol as per the WHO coding recommendation.
Mr Kuria pointed out that the national guidelines for the management of health care waste, state that every hospital must have a plan, including packaging, segregation, labelling, transporting, storage, tracking, treatment and disposal.
Mr Kuria said the Waste Management Regulations stipulate that medical waste should be incinerated.
“We are not asking all hospitals to install incinerators. NEMA licenses waste transporters is an option for medical facilities to dispose of their waste. All we require is evidence that medical facilities have procured NEMA-licensed transporters to deliver waste to licensed incinerators,” he said.
“Improper medical waste disposal exposes residents to diseases such as hepatitis and HIV,” Mr Kuria added.
The World Health Organization, in an earlier report, warned that over 30,000 new HIV infections result from contact with contaminated materials – especially surgical needles.
The Public Health Act requirement is that healthcare waste should be treated prior to disposal to ensure protection from the potential hazards posed.
“To be effective, treatment must reduce or eliminate the risk present in the waste, so that it no longer poses a hazard to persons who may be exposed to it,” the regulations read.
By Jane Ngugi
