Medical Waste: A Minimal Hazard

Abstract

Healthcare providers need to be aware of the facts regarding the environmental impact of regulated medical wastes and be prepared to voice concern over unnecessary and costly regulations. The wash-ups of waste, a small percentage of which was medical waste, on the beaches on New York and New Jersey in the summers of 1987 and 1988 prompted an immediate response by state and federal governments. Although it was demonstrated that this medical waste did not originate in healthcare facilities,' the public demanded that their elected representatives do something about what they perceived to be the degradation of the environment and a risk to public health caused by “uncontrolled dumping” of “medical wastes” into the ocean. As a result of these and other occurrences, several environmental concerns regarding the treatment and disposal of medical waste were voiced by the public and acknowledged by the legislators. These included the following: aesthetic damage to the environment; potential public health problems associated with infectious agents in medical waste; and potential environmental contamination with hazardous chemicals and radioactivity associated with medical wastes.