| dc.description.abstract | The research study was based on evaluation of biomedical waste management and was carried
out at the Mater Hospital in Nairobi County and the main objective of the study was to examine
the policies and regulations regarding biomedical waste management of the Mater Hospital. The
specific objectives were to: a) Evaluate the types of biomedical wastes generated by the Mater
Hospital, and know the existing practices regarding biomedical waste and its management at the
Mater Hospital, b) Assess compliance of the facility’s activities with Environmental
Management and Coordination Act 1999 as well as Environmental Management and
Coordination (Waste Management) Regulations 2006, c) Evaluate the awareness in hospital
personnel regarding bio-medical waste and its management, d) Assessment of health and safety
practices for the health care personnel involved in Bio-Medical Waste Management.
Both primary and secondary data were used. Secondary data was obtained from the hospitals’
documents, published hospital magazines and booklets as well as the hospital website. Primary
data was collected using questionnaire, informal interviews, key informant and observation
checklist to check the waste categories, quantities and how they were handled; existence of
BMWM plan and policies; BMW treatment methods and protective gears available for the waste
handlers. The visits took 10 days between 7th and 16th of July 2013 and photos were taken where
necessary to accompany the findings during the field research. The respondents were sampled
using stratified sampling across the different departments in eight categories which included 8
doctors, 9 nurses, 4 radiologists, 4 pharmacists, 10 lab assistants, 6 administrative staff, 5
teaching staff and 7 support staff totaling to 53 respondents. The doctors and nurses were
sampled from different departments having 1 doctor and 1 nurse from each department which
were casualty, wards, consultants’ clinic, theatre, dental unit, well mother clinic, well baby clinic
and dialysis unit with an extra nurse from ICU.
Data was analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and hypotheses
tested using Chi square technique. The results indicated that ―Biomedical waste management
practices are dependent of staff awareness‖.
Even though the hospital failed to provide information on the quantity of waste the hospital
generated, it was concluded that there was adequate training of personnel, and awareness
regarding the proper ways of handling biomedical wastes though some of the waste handlers did
not segregate wastes but mixed them up and a large amount was incinerated including the wastes
that would otherwise have been noninfectious. The study concluded that regular orientation and
re-orientation training programs should be organized for hospital staff and strict implementation
of guidelines of biomedical waste management, to protect themselves and hospital visitors.
The study therefore recommends a training program for different levels of hospital staff in BMW
management; Improving waste minimization and management; measure and quantify the amount
of medical waste generated in each unit of the hospital periodically; avail the BMW management
plan to all departments then a regular program of inspection and review can be undertaken within
the hospital | en_US |
