One Day Brainstorming Session on “Bio-Medical Waste Management Practices in India”

A one-day brain storming session on “Bio-Medical Waste Management Practices in India” was jointly organized by UCOST and Department of Management Studies, IIT Roorkee on 1st September 2015 at UCOST Dehradun.
Bio-medical waste is generated in the process of providing medical services. It is a by-product of health care that includes sharps, non-sharps, blood, body parts, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and radioactive materials. The improper management of wastes generated in health-care facilities can severely affect the health of caregivers, patients and individual members of the community.

The session was chaired by Dr. Rajendra Dobhal, DG UCOST. The session started with a keynote address by Dr. Dobhal wherein he discussed the challenges that have developed due to improper management of bio-medical waste. He categorically mentioned that biological waste management is a serious threat in hilly areas and measures should be taken at the earliest to address them. Dr. Dobhal provided a foretaste of UCOST’s bio-medical waste disposal technology which is transferred to Doon Hospital. He stressed that new eco-friendly technologies should be available to the public at affordable cost.

Prof. (Dr.) Ashok K Agarwal, Dean, International Institute of Health Management Research, New Delhi delivered a lecture and sensitized the participants with legal framework of bio-medical waste management, technologies available and measures to be taken. Dr. Agarwal stated that while health-care services restore health and save lives, on the other hand, unsafe management and improper disposal of the wastes and by-products produced by these services pose a number of life- threatening risks. He also noted that open burning and inadequate incineration of medical waste is still practiced in India. Such practices may cause adverse health effects due to the release of highly toxic fumes, as well as contributing to global warming. He presented a number of successful models of bio-waste management from India and abroad.

Dr. M. K. Jha, Chief Medical Officer at IIT Roorkee Hospital provided a brief overview of bio-medical waste management at IIT Roorkee Hospital and provided various suggestions for effective management of bio-medical waste. The session witnessed various interactive discussions on the topic among participants. The session was attended by Dr. S Rangnekar, HoD DoMS IIT Roorkee, Dr. A Ramesh, Assistant Professor IITR, Dr. Gaurav Dixit, Assistant Professor IITR and Scientific Officers from UCOST and IIT Roorkee.