Clinical and Nappy Waste Disposal

August, 5, 2013

Running any business that requires clinical or offensive waste control is a sensitive operation, that by its very nature requires staff who are sympathetic to the needs of patients, and/or who can work with material which is often confidential, and certainly requires a high level of concentration.

Many practices and companies throw out their clinical waste – that is medical waste – along with everyday rubbish. However, by doing this, people are often creating a hazard, or even breaking the law. And it’s not just businesses involved in medicine that need to take note.

So why is it so important to dispose of your clinical waste differently?

If it’s not managed correctly, clinical waste can be harmful to the environment, to the public, and also to the reputation of your business.

The reality is that clinical waste can be complicated and time consuming. Anything that could be considered clinical – such as chemical waste, human or animal tissue, or even small items such as a swab or a plaster, should be correctly disposed of in a marked, yellow bag, that is securely fastened. What’s more, needles and scalpels – and other ‘sharps’ – should be disposed of in a sharps bin.

That’s just two types of clinical waste, so it’s easy to see why people get confused. But incorrectly disposed of clinical waste can lead to the spread of infection. Don’t think that by disposing of clinical waste in an area where humans can’t get to it solves the problem: if pests and other animals can get to it, then infection can spread at a very rapid rate.

For businesses who have to dispose of any sort of clinical waste, appointing a firm of clinical waste contractors can be a very shrewd move: not only will it save you the time needed to correctly sort your waste, but it will also give you – and your employees – the peace of mind, knowing that your different sub-categories of clinical waste are being dealt with properly, with no laws broken and the risk of being responsible for causing infection to spread being avoided.

Legislation set out by the Health and Safety Executive makes it very clear what the responsibilities of company’s are with regard to the correct disposal of clinical waste. But it’s understandable that many companies – whose involvement with clinical waste could be minimal – have greater issues to worry about. Many companies are continuing to struggle through these times of austerity and how they dispose of their rubbish is the least of their worries.

But the reality is that break the law, and get caught, and a company could have very big problems indeed. Appointing a clinical waste contractor means you can focus on the things that really matter – like running your business.

There are five groups of clinical waste, and each one needs to be disposed of in a very specific way. Clinical waste contractors will know first hand how to deal with anything in any category – giving peace of mind to any business owner.

**If you’re a business looking for a solution with any kind of clinical waste, get in touch with Golden Hygiene to see how we can help you.**