The World Health Organisation (WHO) says tonnes of extra medical waste from the response to COVID-19 pandemic has put tremendous strain on health care waste management systems globally.
WHO in a report on Tuesday alarmed that it was threatening human and environmental health and exposing a dire need to improve waste management practices.
The report said that WHO global analysis of health care waste in the context of COVID-19 status impacts and recommendations bases its estimates on approximately 87,000 tonnes of personal protective equipment (PPE).
The report said that it was procured between March 2020 and November 2021 and shipped to support countries’ COVID-19 response needs through a joint UN emergency initiative.
“Most of this equipment is expected to have ended up as waste,” it said.
The reports said that the authors noted that this provides an initial indication of the scale of COVID-19 waste problem.
“It does not take into account any of the COVID-19 commodities procured outside of the initiative, nor waste generated by the public like disposable medical masks.
“Over 140 million test kits, with a potential to generate 2,600 tonnes of non-infectious waste (mainly plastic) and 731,000 litres of chemical waste (equivalent to one-third of an Olympic-size swimming pool) have been shipped,” it stated.
According to the report, while more than eight billion doses of vaccine have been administered globally producing 144,000 tonnes of additional waste in the form of syringes, needles, and safety boxes.
“As the UN and countries grappled with the immediate task of securing and quality-assuring supplies of PPE, less attention and resources were devoted to the safe and sustainable management of COVID-19 related medical waste,” it said.
The reports said that the Executive Director, Health Emergencies Programme, WHO, Dr Michael Ryan, said absolute vital, would provide health workers with the right PPE.
According to him, it is also vital to ensure that it can be used safely without impacting the surrounding environment.
“This means having effective management systems in place, including guidance for health workers on what to do with PPE and health commodities after they have been used,” he said.
Dr Maria Neira, Director, Environment, Climate Change and Health at WHO said that 30 percent of healthcare facilities (60 percent in the least developed countries) are not equipped to handle existing waste loads.
Neira said such potentially exposes health workers to needle stick injuries, burns and pathogenic microorganisms.
He said it also impacted communities living near poorly managed landfills and waste disposal sites through contaminated air from burning waste, poor water quality or disease-carrying pests.
“COVID-19 has forced the world to reckon with the gaps and neglected aspects of the waste stream and how we produce, use and discard of our health care resources, from cradle to grave.
“Significant change at all levels, from the global to the hospital floor; in how we manage the health care waste stream is a basic requirement of climate-smart health care systems.
“Which many countries committed to at the recent UN Climate Change Conference, and, of course, a healthy recovery from COVID-19 and preparedness for other health emergencies in the future,” he said.
The report lays out a set of recommendations for integrating better, safer, and more environmentally sustainable waste practices into the current COVID-19 response and future pandemic preparedness.
The report also highlights stories from countries and organisations that have put into practice in the spirit of “building back better”.
The recommendations include using eco-friendly packaging and shipping, safe and reusable PPE, recyclable or biodegradable materials; investment in non-burn waste treatment technologies, such as autoclaves.
It also recommended the reverse logistics to support centralised treatment and investments in the recycling sector to ensure materials, like plastics, can have a second life.
It said that the COVID-19 waste challenge and increasing urgency to address environmental sustainability offer an opportunity to strengthen systems to safely and sustainably reduce and manage health care waste.
It noted that such can be through strong national policies and regulations, regular monitoring and reporting and increased accountability, behaviour change support and workforce development, and increased budgets and financing.
Dr Anne Woolridge, Chair of the Health Care Waste Working Group, International Solid Waste Association (ISWA), said that a systemic change in how health care manages its waste would include greater scrutiny and better procurement practices.
“There is growing appreciation that health investments must consider environmental and climate implications, as well as a greater awareness of co-benefits of action.
“For example, safe and rational use of PPE will not only reduce environmental harm from waste, it will also save money, reduce potential supply shortages and further support infection prevention by changing behaviours,” Woolridge said.(NAN)