Open AccessA study of medical waste management reality in health institutions in Al-Diwaniyah Governorate - Iraq
Author(s) -
Ahmed Mahmoud Falih,
Mohammed K. Al Kasser,
M. Abbas,
Hiba Abbas Ali
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
iop conference series. earth and environmental science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1755-1307
pISSN - 1755-1315
DOI - 10.1088/1755-1315/790/1/012032
Subject(s) - medical waste , christian ministry , business , dumping , public health , government (linguistics) , unit (ring theory) , rainwater harvesting , municipal solid waste , health care , waste management , sewage , local government , sewage treatment , environmental planning , environmental health , medicine , environmental science , public administration , economic growth , nursing , engineering , political science , ecology , linguistics , philosophy , mathematics education , mathematics , international trade , law , biology , economics
The current study was conducted in Diwaniyah Governorate, Iraq (180 km south of Baghdad) to determine the effect of the wastes produced by health institutions on the environment and public health. The results showed that the amount of solid medical wastes generated from hospitals ranges between 3-3432 kg/day, and the treatment process is incinerators without any care taking to the health and environmental standards criteria. The study indicated that some hospitals do not contain waste treatment units for medical wastes. The medical wastes resulting from private clinics and laboratories are thrown with municipal waste without any sorting or treatment process. Liquid wastes from some government hospitals are thrown to the public sewage network without chemical treatment, while private hospitals lack wastewater treatment unit, and its wastewater and that’s results from medical clinics and private laboratories are discharged either directly into the river’s water through the rainwater network or by dumping it into the drainage using tank cars without any treatment. Thus, that most governmental and private health institutions do not have the ability to manage their medical wastes in an environmentally responsible manner and are not committed to the standards recommended by the Iraqi Ministry of Health and Environment in managing their medical wastes, which exposes workers in these health institutions, patients and the general public at risk in addition to the negative impacts on the environment and its living resources.