Handling Medical Waste Containers
Handling, transporting, and using medical waste containers.
If you have visited a doctor’s office, hospital, or other facility that deals with hazardous waste, you’re probably familiar with the containers that collect medical waste, such as red bags, sharps containers, and biohazardous receptacles.
This waste isn’t taken out with the regular trash at the end of the day. Medical waste is dealt with according to specific laws and regulations to prevent the spread of infection and to protect the environment from contamination.
Once medical waste is discarded in its proper container, it must be handled and transported in accordance with the law not only for compliance reasons, but also for health and safety reasons.
Here are some handling tips for medical waste containers:
Keep it sealed. Keep it safe.
Open containers spell disaster for staff and patients because this increases the risk for the spread of potentially infectious disease. Make sure sharps containers, red bags, and other medical waste containers aren’t overfilled.
Keep everything labeled and color coded.
Red bags are red for a reason, just as sharps containers are rigid and puncture proof and are affixed with the proper labels. This alerts staff and waste haulers to the contents, and also potential contagions within the medical waste container. Check with local and federal regulations on what labels and colored containers you have to use to ensure compliance and safety. Of course, never mix medical waste. Keep sharps in sharps containers, red bag waste in red bags, and other hazardous waste in the correct containers.
Don’t transport the containers yourself!
Medical waste must be collected by a licensed medical waste hauler, as this waste disposal is closely monitored and regulated in most states. The waste must be treated and rendered harmless before it can be recycled or thrown away. Let RedBags.com take care of your disposal to mitigate risk, maintain compliance, and keep communities safe. Contact us today!
Service Areas: Long Island Medical Waste; New York City Medical Waste; Westchester Medical Waste and more!