Waste-Disposal Checklist

Use this checklist to help determine whether your facility is currently practicing waste disposal adequately. Tour your facility--including the final waste-disposal site--and use this checklist to record whether the following practices are performed correctly.

For each "no" answer below, determine why the appropriate practice is not being performed and work with staff at your facility to find ways of addressing the problems.

• Your facility has separate containers for medical waste, general waste, and sharps
  ___Yes | No___

• All three types of containers are clearly marked or labeled.
  ___Yes | No___

• Medical and sharps containers are located in every area where they might be needed (including operating rooms, procedure rooms, and instrument processing rooms).
  ___Yes | No___

• Washable, leak-proof containers (preferably plastic or galvanized metal) are used for disposal of medical waste in operating theaters and procedure rooms.
  ___Yes | No___

• These containers are washed with a disinfectant cleaning solution at least once a day.
  ___Yes | No___

• Sharps containers are made of a puncture-resistant material (cardboard, plastic, or metal).
  ___Yes | No___

• Staff do not have to walk across the room or farther carrying used sharps.
  ___Yes | No___

2. Handling

• All staff wear heavy utility gloves and sturdy shoes when handling medical waste.
  ___Yes | No___

• After handling medical waste, staff wash both their gloves and their hands.
  ___Yes | No___

• Medical waste containers are emptied daily or whenever they are 3/4 full.
  ___Yes | No ___

• Sharps containers are closed securely and disposed of whenever they are 3/4 full.
  ___Yes | No___

• Medical-waste containers are cleaned with a disinfectant cleaning solution and rinsed with water daily, or more often, if visibly contaminated.
  ___Yes | No___

• When transporting waste containers within the facility, the containers are securely closed (staff never cart used waste in wheelbarrows or other open conveyances).
  ___Yes | No___

• Interim storage sites and medical waste-disposal sites are located in areas that are minimally accessible to staff, clients, and visitors.
  ___Yes | No___

• All interim storage containers have lids.
  ___Yes | No___

• Interim storage sites are protected by a barrier such as a fence or wall to keep animals and children out.
  ___Yes | No___

• Waste is never stored on site for more than a few days before final disposal.
  ___Yes | No___

• Waste is disposed of on the premises.
  ___Yes | No___

• Solid medical waste is either incinerated or buried in a waste-disposal pit.
  ___Yes | No___

• If medical waste is burned in a drum incinerator:

The incinerator is located downwind from the clinic.
___Yes | No___

The incinerator has sufficient air inlets on the side.
___Yes | No___

The incinerator is placed on hard earth or a concrete base.
___Yes | No___

The incinerator is surrounded by a fence or wall to limit access.
___Yes | No___

The fire is never left unattended.
___Yes | No___

Only medical waste is burned.
___Yes | No___

Ash from the incinerator is disposed of with general waste.
___Yes | No___

• If medical waste is buried:

The burial site is at least 50 meters away from any water source.
___Yes | No___

The site is located downhill from any wells, is free of standing water, is in an area that does not flood, has proper drainage, and is not located on land that will be used for agriculture or development.
___Yes | No___

The pit is 1-2 meters wide and 2-5 meters deep. The bottom of the pit is at least 1.8 meters above the water table.
___Yes | No___

Every time waste is added to the pit, it is covered with a 10-30-cm layer of soil.
___Yes | No___

When the level of waste reaches to within 30-50 cm of the ground surface, the pit is filled with dirt, sealed with concrete, and another pit is dug.
___Yes | No___

• Liquid medical waste and hazardous chemical waste are poured down a drain, toilet, or sink, or is buried in the waste-disposal pit.
  ___Yes | No___

• If liquid waste is poured down a drain, toilet, or sink, it does not run through an open gutter or empty onto the grounds of the clinic.
  ___Yes | No___

• If waste is poured down a drain, toilet, or sink, the area is rinsed thoroughly with water and cleaned with a disinfectant cleaning solution at the end of each day, or more frequently.
  ___Yes | No___

• Containers that have held liquid waste are decontaminated with a 0.5% chlorine solution and soaked for 10 minutes before washing.
  ___Yes | No___

• Liquid waste is never poured directly on the ground or near an outdoor water source.
  ___Yes | No___

• Sharps are burned in a large, industrial incinerator.
  ___Yes | No___

• If a large industrial incinerator is not available:
  

  Sharps are decontaminated, then rendered harmless by being melted into a solid block of plastic before being buried in a proper waste-disposal pit.
  ___Yes | No___

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