A cross sectional study amongst paramedical workers and nursing students regarding awareness of various aspects of biomedical waste (management and handling) rules
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18203/2394-6040.ijcmph20151581Keywords:
Biomedical waste, Paramedical workers, G.N.M. students, B.Sc. Nursing studentsAbstract
Background: Various type of waste are produced during healthcare activities. Such waste generated has more chances of causing serious infection and also injury to persons coming in contact with them directly or indirectly. Lack of adequate and appropriate knowledge of handling of healthcare waste may lead to serious health consequences to such persons and have significant adverse impact on the environment as well. The objective of the study was to assess the level of Awareness of various aspects of Biomedical Waste (Management and handling) Rules amongst paramedical workers and nursing students.
Methods:This was a cross-sectional study. The study was conducted amongst paramedical workers and nursing students posted at Prince Bijay Singh Memorial (PBM) and Associated Group of Hospitals Attached to Sardar Patel Medical College, Bikaner.
Results: Out of 607 respondents, maximum (57%) were Paramedical workers followed by General Nursing and Midwifery (G. N. M) students (24.7%), and B.Sc. nursing students (18.3%). Majority (70.6%) of the participants didn’t have any training on Biomedical Waste management. 20.6% of study population had poor awareness regarding various aspects of Biomedical Waste Management. Highly significant difference was seen when awareness of various professional group regarding different aspects of Biomedical Waste Management was compared.
Conclusions:The lack of proper and complete awareness about Biomedical Waste Handling and management rules impacts practice of appropriate waste disposal leading to serious health consequences, thus there is need to reinforce and update knowledge of health care workers on the subject.
References
Rutala WA, Weber DJ. Disinfection, sterilization and control of hospital waste. In: Mandell, Douglas and Bennett's Principles and practice of infectious diseases. 6th ed. Elsevier: Churchill Livingstone Publication. 2005:3331-47.
Sharma M. Hospital waste management and its monitoring. Jaypee Brothers Medical Publication, 2002.
Pruss A, Giroult E, Rushbrook D. Safe Management of Wastes from health-care activities. World Health Organization, Geneva, 1999.
Patil AD, Shekder AV. Health-care waste management in India. Journal of Environmental Management. 2001;63(2):211-20.
Johannessen LM, Dijkman M, Bartone C, Hanrahan D, Boyer MG, Chandra C. Health Care Waste Management Guidance Note. Washington DC: World Bank, 2000.
Bio-medical Waste – Ministry of Environment and Forests. Draft Rules. Bio-Medical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2015(internet). Cited 16 Nov 2015.
Yadavannavar MC, Berad AS, Jagirdar P. Biomedical Waste Management: A Study of Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices in a Tertiary Health Care Institution in Bijapur. Indian J Community Med. 2010;35:170-1.
Arun HS. Effectively communicating the 5R’s (replace, reduce, refine, reuse and rehabilitate) of research ethics, biomedical waste, personalized medicine and the rest. Journal Natural Science Biology and Medicine. 2012;3:1-2.
Joseph J, Krishnan ACG. Hospital Waste Management in the Union Territory of Pondicherry- An Exploration. Govt. of Pondicherry Institution, Pondicherry, 2004.
Habibullah S, Salahuddin A. Waste Disposal of Government Health-Care Facilities in Urban Area of Karachi: A KAP Survey. Pak J Med Res. 2007;46(1):2.
Ramokate T, Basu D. Health care waste management at an academic hospital: knowledge and practices of doctors and nurses. S Afr Med J. 2009;99(6):444-5.
Umar A, Yaro A. Hospital Waste Management in Katsina State. Bayero Journal of Pure and Applied Sciences. 2009;2(2):22-6.
Leena K. To study the awareness on biomedical waste management among nurses and paramedical staff, The 7 Indo British General Hospital at Khadkhi, Pune (internet). 2009:1-18.
Mathew SS, Benjamin AI, Sengupta P. Assessment of biomedical waste management practices in a tertiary care teaching hospital in Ludhiana. Healthline. 2011;2(2):28-9.
Basu M, Das P, Pal R. Assessment of future physicians on biomedical waste management in a tertiary care hospital of West Bengal. Journal of Natural Science, Biology and Medicine. 2012;3(1):38-42.
Suwarana MK, Ramesh G. Study about Awareness and Practices about Health Care Wastes Management among Hospital Staff in a Medical College Hospital, Bangalore. International Journal of Basic Medical Science. 2012;3(1):7-11.
Shafee M, Kasturwar NB, Nirupama N. Study of Knowledge, Attitude and Practices regarding Biomedical Waste among Paramedical Workers in Karimnagar, Andhra Pradesh. Indian Journal of Community Medicine. 2010;35(2):369-70.
Bathma V, Likhar S, Mishra M, Athavale A, Agarwal S, Shukla U. Knowledge Assessment of Hospital Staff regarding Biomedical Waste Management in a Tertiary Care Hospital, Bhopal. National Journal of Community Medicine. 2012;3(2):197-200.
Mensudar R, Karthick A, Amutha D, Vivekanandhan P. Survey on Biomedical Waste Management. Indian Journal of Multidisciplinary Dentistry. 2011;1(2):86-8.
Bansal M, Mishra A, Gautam P, Changulani R, Srivastava D, Singh NG. Biomedical Waste Management: Awareness and Practices in a District of Madhya Pradesh. National Journal of Community Medicine. 2011;2(3):452-6.
