Biomedical waste management associated with infectious diseases among health care professionals in apex hospitals of a typical south asian city

Biomedical waste from healthcare activities poses a higher hazard of infection and damage than other types of trash. The main objective of the study was to assess the awareness knowledge and practices of biomedical waste management (BMWM) among health care professionals in the health care units. The cross-sectional study was carried out to access the awareness, knowledge and practices of health care professionals for BMWM. Using a qualitative approach, the study was escorted in two Apex hospitals i.e. the Allied Hospital and the District Head Quarter Hospital, Faisalabad, Pakistan from August 5, 2019 to October 15, 2019. More than 90% of respondents knew the phrase BMWM, but just 35.4% had awareness about biomedical waste regulations. About 71.6% of the respondents were familiar with biomedical waste's color-coding segregation. The study concludes gap in the awareness, knowledge and practices for BMWM. The sanitary workers of the hospitals had no knowledge about BMWM and the BMWM/healthcare waste management rule 2005 established in Pakistan due to the lack of training regarding waste management and the segregation process. Some of the staff members were aware of the BMWM practices under the rules and regulations of Pakistan but were unable to implement at their work place. It is necessary to dispose of the biomedical waste according to the established terms and conditions of BMWM rules (2005) of Pakistan. Weak structure of BMWM was observed at the study sites due to the lack of training, lia-bilities and absence of penalties against improper biomedical waste disposal as violation of the rules and reg-ulations. It's a dire need of the time to consider the biomedical waste as hazardous waste and make policies for its safe disposal and ensure the implementation of the policies in all the medical centers of Pakistan.

Automated summary

The study aimed to assess the awareness, knowledge, and practices of biomedical waste management among healthcare professionals in Pakistan. The study found a gap in the awareness, knowledge, and practices of healthcare professionals regarding biomedical waste management. It also revealed that sanitary workers in hospitals lacked knowledge about waste management and the established regulations. The study concludes that it is crucial to consider biomedical waste as hazardous waste and implement policies for its safe disposal in all medical centers in Pakistan.