Medical Waste vs Sanitary Waste
10/10/2019
Many facilities are unsure if the same regulations apply to both medical and sanitary waste. Sanitary waste is also called feminine hygiene waste and is comprised of soiled sanitary towels and tampons. It’s important that these products are disposed of safely to protect colleagues, cleaning staff and visitors to the healthcare facility.
The law doesn’t demand that employers must provide sanitary waste dispensers in toilets, but it is very specific about how such waste must be destroyed. The law specifies that commercial volumes of sanitary waste must not be mixed into the general municipal waste stream. The reason for this is that sanitary waste is a blood product and may be contaminated with bloodborne pathogens such as HIV or hepatitis B. Therefore, if large volumes of such waste are dumped at regular landfills, workers there are put at risk. There’s also a risk of groundwater contamination. Therefore, the law stipulates that sanitary waste must be collected by certified waste carriers.
Briefly then, sanitary waste is disposed of in the same way as medical waste if you are on a commercial premise. Both need to be disposed of into designated units. Sanitary waste must go into feminine hygiene units and medical waste into various colored medical waste bins.