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COVID 19 Pandemic and biomedical waste management practices in healthcare system
Ramkrishna Mondal1, Siddharth Mishra1, Jawahar S K Pillai1
1Department of Hospital Administration, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India.
Insights
The COVID-19 pandemic significantly increased biomedical waste (BMW), posing challenges in its management. Effective waste segregation, disposal, and worker safety are crucial for controlling infection spread and future pandemic preparedness.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Public Health
- Infectious Disease Management
Background:
- The Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) pandemic created unprecedented challenges in managing infectious healthcare waste.
- The novel nature of the virus necessitated stringent precautions, amplifying the issue of biomedical waste (BMW) generation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically review the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on biomedical waste management practices.
- To analyze challenges and identify best practices in BMW handling during the pandemic.
Main Methods:
- A systematic literature review was conducted using keywords 'biomedical waste' and 'COVID 19'.
- Searches were performed in major open-access databases (PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus, Google Scholar).
- PRISMA guidelines were followed for article selection, with 102 articles analyzed from an initial pool of 2124.
Main Results:
- The pandemic led to a significant increase in BMW generation globally.
- Challenges were identified across the entire waste management cycle: segregation, collection, storage, transportation, and disposal.
- Increased use of personal protective equipment (PPE) contributed to a rise in plastic waste.
Conclusions:
- Strict monitoring and adherence to guidelines are essential for worker safety and infection containment.
- Sustainable recycling methods and a reevaluation of healthcare systems are needed.
- Robust pandemic preparedness requires global public health strategies and long-term investments for future resilience.
Abstract:
The whole world was shaken with the pandemic of Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) in end of the year 2019. Due to its novel origin, it was required to follow all precautions possible. Dealing with the massive amount of infectious healthcare waste became an enormous challenge. This review identifies the impacts of the pandemic on biomedical waste management. This systematic review was made by using keywords "biomedical waste" and "COVID 19" in open access databases like PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus, Google Scholers etc. 2124 articles downloaded and 765 found duplicate and 634 not related to the topic. after scrutiny with inclusion criteria 102 articles were considered to analyze the practices related to biomedical waste management during pandemic using PRISMA guideline.. The COVID-19 waste segregation, collection, storage, transportation, and disposal are a big challenge with all stakeholders. In order to control the virus spread, strict monitoring of the complete waste management cycle is required. Adoption of appropriate guidelines is paramount to worker safety and containment of infection. Sustainable recycling methods are needed to deal with the ever-increasing plastic waste resulting from mandatory personal protective equipment (PPE) usage. The situation also demands a rethinking of the healthcare system. Overall, there was an increase in BMW generation, and municipal waste had increased globally. Pandemic preparedness requires a global public health strategy and long-term investments. This will be vital for making a robust community capable enough to fight against any public health pressures in the future, as well as the pandemic tremors. Systematized efforts from all stakeholders, at all levels, not only refines epidemic preparation but also helps to attain a sustainable development of health for a healthier future.
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