The COVID pandemic has generated medical waste on an immense scale, according to a new report.
The World Health Organization report has outlined the scale of the medical waste linked to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The report, published yesterday, explains that tens of thousands of tonnes of extra medical waste is straining health care waste management systems around the world.
More than 140 million test kits have been produced, creating an estimated 2,600 tonnes of mainly plastic waste and 731,000 litres of chemical waste. Over eight billion vaccine doses have been administered, producing 144,000 tonnes of waste in the form of syringes, needles, and safety boxes.
In ‘Global analysis of health care waste in the context of COVID-19’ the authors add that the pandemic "is exacerbating environmental impacts from solid waste".
Their report covers the emerging best practices and solutions to reduce the impact of waste on human and environmental health
Included in the recommendations are "prescriptions and actionables for a healthy and green recovery". These actions would promote a win-win scenario, they explain, for PPE use, testing and vaccinations that are safe and support environmental sustainability.
Dr Michael Ryan, Executive Director, WHO Health Emergencies Programme, says: “It is absolutely vital to provide health workers with the right PPE. But it is also vital to ensure that it can be used safely without impacting on the surrounding environment.”
Dr Maria Neira, Director, Environment, Climate Change and Health at WHO, commented: “COVID-19 has forced the world to reckon with the gaps and neglected aspects of the waste stream and how we produce, use and discard our health care resources, from cradle to grave.
“Significant change at all levels, from the global to the hospital floor, in how we manage the health care waste stream is a basic requirement.”
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