Biomedical waste generation, composition and management: A case study of Shree Maharaja Gulab Singh Hospital (SMGS) Shalamar, Jammu (J&K)

Abstract

For the life, health and general well-being, good medical care play vital role and hospitals are health institutions that provide these services. Wastes generated from the hospitals, medical care units, blood banks and medical laboratory is called biomedical waste. Proper management of biomedical waste is important for good health of not only the patients but also for residents living in the vicinity of hospitals. The present study, has been made to study biomedical waste management in SMGS Hospital Jammu (Jammu and Kashmir). The average biomedical waste per bed per day of SMGS Hospital was observed to be 116.37g, whereas maximum value of average biomedical waste per bed per day was observed to be 315.61g in Gynecology and  Obstetric, 68.34g in ENT wards, 37.28g in Paedriatic wards and 44.27g in Dermatology wards The average per bed per day biomedical waste generation in SMGS hospital appears to be  is less as compared with work of other workers because their evaluations were based on Biomedical Waste (Management and Handing) Rules, 1998 in which both infectious and non-infectious waste were included whereas present study was based on Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules which included only infectious waste.