115 hospitals in dock for violating bio waste disposal pact

Altogether 115 medical units, including hospitals, nursing homes, pathology labs and orthopaedic and maternity clinics of the city are in the dock for not sending their bio waste for disposal to the Naini based Bio-Waste Disposal Management Unit. After the officials of the unit wrote a letter to the CMO on Tuesday in this connection, he has warned the erring units of strict action if they fail to comply with the norms within 15 days.
Admitting that he has received a letter from the waste disposal unit, CMO Dr Padmakar Singh told TOI, “Around 500 hospitals, clinics and pathology labs operating in the district had signed agreements with the unit for proper disposal of medical waste. However, 115 of them have not complied with the terms of agreement and not supplying the unit with bio waste for disposal. The health department is serving notices on the erring health units and if they fail to comply with the norms within a fortnight, their licences would be cancelled.”
“We have also set up a three-member team of departmental officials to go into the details,” he added.
The CMO said medical waste can be perilous, noxious and even fatal because of its high potential for disease transmission. An estimated 1,200 kg of medical waste is generated in the city daily. For its disposal, the department engages common treatment facility service providers and subsequently asks hospitals and health centres in city and rural areas to follow the guidelines of waste disposal.
Health officials said that “there are a total of 283 hospitals registered with the CMO office. Around 1,500 medical facilities, including pathological labs, maternity clinics and ortho-clinics besides ayurvedic, Unani and homoeopathic clinics are operating in the city”.
Ayurvedic, Unani and homoeo as well as other medicine clinics do not generate any medical waste. But most of the nursing homes produce medical waste in form of solid and liquid, including its container and any transitional product, which is generated during the diagnosis, treatment or immunisation of human beings and animals and during researches.
Additional CMO Dr Dipendra Malviya said the perilous and noxious parts of waste from medical units comprising infectious, bio-medical and radio-active material as well as sharp instruments like hypodermic needles, knives and scalpels mostly constituted a grave risk if these were not properly disposed. “Common treatment facility providers are being asked to dispose of the bio-medical waste properly and the health department is also consulting agencies like the Allahabad Municipal Corporation on the issue,”