NEW DELHI: Hospitals and urban local bodies should provide safety training to Covid-19 waste handlers and sanitation workers about infection prevention measures such as hand hygiene, respiratory etiquettes, social distancing and use of appropriate personal protective equipment, said a directive by the Central Pollution Control Board.
The pollution control board had in April issued guidelines for handling, treatment and disposal of waste generated during the treatment/diagnosis/quarantine of Covid-19 patients.
Revision-3 of the guidelines was issued to incorporate norms on segregation of general solid waste and biomedical waste. It also addresses the issue of safety of waste handlers and sanitation workers associated with healthcare facilities, local bodies and Common Biomedical Waste Treatment Facility in handling of waste generated from quarantine centres, healthcare facilities and households with Covid-19 patients.
The CPCB said that in the Covid isolation wards, general solid waste like wrappers of medicine/syringe, fruit peels, empty water and juice bottles/cans/tetra packs, discarded papers, cartons of medicines, empty bottles of disinfectants and any other item not contaminated by the patient’s secretions or body fluids should be collected separately as per the Solid Waste Management Rules.
“Items like leftover food, disposable plates, glass and used masks/tissues/toiletries etc. used by the patient shall become biomedical waste and shall be segregated in yellow bag. Used gloves and plastic bottle will be disposed of in red bag,” it said.
The guidelines say bags containing general waste may be sprayed with disinfectant solution prior to disposal.