The improper disposal of medical waste leads to serious issues, not only for the facility that the waste belongs to, but to the general public. The effects of medical waste on human health are astronomical if the waste is not disposed of properly. Even if the facility is not at fault because the disposal company improperly disposed of it, the facility – not the disposal company – will be fined.
Medical Waste Pollution
The risks of improperly disposing of medical waste include:
- Danger to personnel and patients, including diseases caused by medical waste. Anyone handling the waste or otherwise exposed to it could contract a deadly disease. And, those who contract it could spread the disease – unknowingly – to others.
- Danger to the community in the form of contaminated material including sharps; and from pathogens released into the air we breathe. Pathogens could be released by burning or because they are an airborne pathogen.
- Legal responsibility for the facility, even when a third party, such as a disposal company, improperly disposes of the medical waste.
- The facility is financially responsible for any consequences of the illegal disposal of medical waste, including medical bills and fines.
- The facility’s reputation is in jeopardy. Even if it were to recover from the high fines imposed, many patients may not continue their care at the facility.
Effects of Dumping Medical Waste
Medical waste pollution affects everyone, even those who do not come into physical contact with the waste. If it is burned in an improper incinerator or in the open air, pathogens become airborne and contaminate the air we breathe. Other medical waste problems include landfill workers, janitorial staff and others becoming infected with a possible deadly disease, animals becoming infected and then spreading the disease, and in the case of dumping in the oceans, the waste destroying the environment.
The effects don’t stop at polluting the environment or causing disease in those who come in direct contact with the medical waste. If those people are unknowingly affected by a disease such as HIV, they may spread it to their loved ones before they realize what has happened.
Causes of Medical Waste
The causes of medical waste may or may not be known to a facility. In one case, a dentist dumped his medical waste off his boat. It then washed up on the east coast of the United States. In some cases, medical waste disposal companies may not properly dispose of medical waste, even though the facility properly separated, contained and stored the waste. And in other cases, a facility may not be collecting and storing it properly.
Blood and other body fluids should not be put into a regular sewer or septic system, but instead into a contained system. Sharps, biomedical waste such as that from chemotherapy and radiation must also be separated and stored in their proper containers. If the medical facility doesn’t properly train its staff, sharps and biomedical waste could end up in the wrong containers, which would cause improper destruction and disposal.
All medical staff must be properly trained and must comply with federal, state and local laws for the storage and disposal of medical waste so to eliminate the effects of biomedical waste on the environment and on the community.
Contact MedWaste Services
Always retain a company that has the proper licensing, insurance and other licenses to dispose of medical waste. MedWaste Services follows all federal, state and local laws when transporting and destroying medical waste so as to ensure facilities who use our services are not fined for improper disposal.