BMW
Biomedical Waste Management - SPMC & PBM AGH
INTRODUCTION
As per the act passed by the Ministry of Environment and Forests in 1986 & notified the Bio Medical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules in July 1998, it is the duty of every “occupier”, (in this case the Principal & Controller, SP Medical College & PBM AGH) i.e. a person who has the control over the institution or its premises, to take all steps to ensure that waste generated is handled without any adverse effect to human health and environment.
The biomedical waste management policy followed at SPMC & PBM AGH is as per the Biomedical Waste Management Rules (Amendment) 2018, notified by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India as per the gazette notification dated 16 March 2018. Prior to this notification, SPMC & PBM AGH had been following the Bio-medical Waste (Management & Handling) Rules 1998 notified by the same ministry. At present, the biomedical waste management at SPMC & PBM AGH has been outsourced to a common biomedical waste management facility, M/S E-Tech Pvt. Ltd..
DEFINITIONS
• Hospital waste: refers to all waste, biological or non‐ biological that is discarded and not intended for further use.
• Bio-medical waste means any waste, which is generated during the diagnosis, treatment or immunization of human beings or animals or in research activities pertaining thereto or in the production or testing of biologicals, and including categories mentioned in Schedule I, of the BMW rules, 2018.
SALIENT FEATURES:
The major salient features of BMW Management Rules (Amendment) 2018 include the following:-
(a) The ambit of the rules has been expanded to include vaccination camps, blood donation camps, surgical camps or any other healthcare activity;
(b) Phase-out the use of chlorinated plastic bags, gloves and blood bags by 27th March, 2019;
(c) Pre-treatment of the laboratory waste, microbiological waste, blood samples and blood bags through disinfection or sterilization on-site in the manner as prescribed by WHO guidelines on safe management of waste from healthcare activities and WHO Blue Book 2018;
(d) At induction and subsequently annually, to provide training, conduct health checkup and also to immunize all health workers regularly;
(e) Establish a Bar-Code System for bags or containers containing bio-medical waste for disposal;
(f) Report major accidents;
(g) The new rules prescribe more stringent standards for incinerator to reduce the emission of pollutants in environment;
(h) Existing incinerators to achieve the standards for retention time in secondary chamber and Dioxin and Furans within two years;
(i) Bio-medical waste has been classified in to 4 categories instead of 10 to improve the segregation of waste at source and to maintain a category-wise daily log of BMW at generation site;
(j) Procedure to get authorization simplified. Automatic authorization for bedded hospitals. The validity of authorization synchronized with validity of consent orders for Bedded HCFs. One time Authorization for Non-bedded HCFs;
(k) No occupier shall establish on-site treatment and disposal facility, if a service of `common bio-medical waste treatment facility is available at distance of seventy-five kilometers.
(l) Operator of a common bio-medical waste treatment and disposal facility to ensure the timely collection of bio-medical waste from the HCFs and assist the HCFs in conduct of training.