Composition and production rate of medical waste from a small producer in Greece

The objective of this work was to determine the composition and production rate of medical waste from the health care facility of social insurance institute, a small waste producer in Xanthi, Greece. Specifically, produced medical waste from the clinical pathology (medical microbiology) laboratory, the X-ray laboratory and the surgery and injection therapy departments of the health facility was monitored for six working weeks. A total of 240 kg medical solid waste was manually separated and weighed and 330 L of liquid medical waste was measured and classified. The hazardous waste fraction (%w/w) of the medical solid waste was 91.6% for the clinical pathology laboratory, 12.9% for the X-ray laboratory, 24.2% for the surgery departments and 17.6% for the injection therapy department. The infectious waste fraction (%w/w) of the hazardous medical solid waste was 75.6% for the clinical pathology laboratory, 0% for the X-ray laboratory, 100% for the surgery departments and 75.6% for the injection therapy department. The total hazardous medical solid waste production rate was 64 ± 15 g/patient/d for the clinical pathology laboratory, 7.2 ± 1.6 g/patient/d for the X-ray laboratory, 8.3 ± 5.1 g/patient/d for the surgery departments and 24 ± 9 g/patient/d for the injection therapy department. Liquid waste was produced by the clinical pathology laboratory (infectious-and-toxic) and the X-ray laboratory (toxic). The production rate for the clinical pathology laboratory was 0.03 ± 0.003 L/patient/d and for the X-ray laboratory was 0.06 ± 0.006 L/patient/d. Due to the small amount produced, it was suggested that the most suitable management scheme would be to transport the hazardous medical waste, after source-separation, to the Prefectural Hospital of Xanthi to be treated with the hospital waste. Assuming this data is representative of other small medical facilities, medical waste production can be estimated for such facilities distributed around Greece.     

Hazardous medical waste generation rates of different categories of health-care facilities

Goal of this work was to calculate the hazardous medical waste unit generation rates (HMWUGR), in kg bed(-1)d(-1), using data from 132 health-care facilities in Greece. The calculations were based on the weights of the hazardous medical wastes that were regularly transferred to the sole medical waste incinerator in Athens over a 22-month period during years 2009 and 2010. The 132 health-care facilities were grouped into public and private ones, and, also, into seven sub-categories, namely: birth, cancer treatment, general, military, pediatric, psychiatric and university hospitals. Results showed that there is a large variability in the HMWUGR, even among hospitals of the same category. Average total HMWUGR varied from 0.012 kg bed(-1)d(-1), for the public psychiatric hospitals, to up to 0.72 kg bed(-1)d(-1), for the public university hospitals. Within the private hospitals, average HMWUGR ranged from 0.0012 kg bed(-1)d(-1), for the psychiatric clinics, to up to 0.49 kg bed(-1)d(-1), for the birth clinics. Based on non-parametric statistics, HMWUGR were statistically similar for the birth and general hospitals, in both the public and private sector. The private birth and general hospitals generated statistically more wastes compared to the corresponding public hospitals. The infectious/toxic and toxic medical wastes appear to be 10% and 50% of the total hazardous medical wastes generated by the public cancer treatment and university hospitals, respectively.     

Medical wastes characterisation in healthcare institutions in Mauritius

This study was initiated to characterize solid and liquid wastes generated in healthcare institutions and to provide a framework for the safe management of these wastes. The project was carried at three major medical institutions, namely, the Jeetoo Hospital, the Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam National (SSRN) Hospital and the Clinic Mauricienne. A waste audit carried out at these sites revealed that approximately 10% of solid wastes was hazardous in nature, consisting mainly of infectious, pathological and chemical wastes. The average amount of hazardous wastes per patient per day was found to be 0.072 kg at Jeetoo hospital, 0.091 kg at SSRN hospital and 0.179 kg at the clinic. The amount of hazardous wastes generated as a function of the number of occupied beds was found to follow a relationship of type y=0.0006x-0.19, where y was the amount of hazardous wastes generated per bed per day and x was the number of occupied beds. The waste quantifying process also revealed that at SSRN Hospital, 0.654 m(3) of water was being consumed per patient per day and the amount of wastewater produced was 500 m(3)/day. Further analysis revealed that the wastewater was polluting with chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand (BOD(5)), total suspended solids (TSS) and coliform content well above permissible limits.     

Composition and production rate of dental solid waste in Xanthi, Greece: variability among dentist groups

The objective of this work was to determine the composition and production rate of dental solid waste, produced by dental practices in the Prefecture of Xanthi, a multicultural area in Northeast Greece with a population of 102,000. For the study, 22 private dental practices and 1 public dental practice were selected of the 48 private and 5 public dental practices in operation. The 22 private dental practices included 16 owned by Christian Greek-born dentists, 3 by Moslem dentists and 3 by Christian dentists repatriated from the former Soviet Union. Differentiation on the basis of religion is directly related to the countries from which dentists received their training, e.g., Greece-European Union, Turkey and former Soviet Union. Thus, including the one public dental practice, 4 study groups were considered. Waste collection took place for 22 working days, from 20 May to 27 June 2002. This period was considered to be a representative one for a semi-rural area, such as Xanthi. Dentists were instructed to collect the total amount of waste they produced. A total of 260 kg dental solid waste was collected during the study period and was manually separated. Dental solid waste was classified in three main categories: (1) Infectious and potentially infectious waste, accounting for 94.7% by weight. (2) Non-infectious waste accounting for 2.0%. (3) Domestic-type waste, accounting for 3.3% by weight. The category of infectious waste is classified as hazardous and includes components containing metal (8.51%), components without metal (91.18%) and amalgam (0.33%). Using the weight data, the production rate of dental solid waste for the study period in the Prefecture of Xanthi was determined to be 513 g/practice/day and of infectious and potentially infectious waste 486 g/practice/day. The latter includes the production rate of sharps (9.8 g/practice/day), non-sharps (31.6), infectious waste without metal (443) and amalgam (1.6 g/practice/day). Since dental solid waste is currently disposed of in landfills together with the municipal solid waste, the results of the study were used to suggest an appropriate management scheme. The results were also used to compare the composition and production rates of dental solid waste produced by the 4 study groups.     

Hospital waste management and toxicity evaluation: a case study

Hospital waste management is an imperative environmental and public safety issue, due to the waste's infectious and hazardous character. This paper examines the existing waste strategy of a typical hospital in Greece with a bed capacity of 400-600. The segregation, collection, packaging, storage, transportation and disposal of waste were monitored and the observed problematic areas documented. The concentrations of BOD, COD and heavy metals were measured in the wastewater the hospital generated. The wastewater's toxicity was also investigated. During the study, omissions and negligence were observed at every stage of the waste management system, particularly with regard to the treatment of infectious waste. Inappropriate collection and transportation procedures for infectious waste, which jeopardized the safety of staff and patients, were recorded. However, inappropriate segregation practices were the dominant problem, which led to increased quantities of generated infectious waste and hence higher costs for their disposal. Infectious waste production was estimated using two different methods: one by weighing the incinerated waste (880 kg day(-1)) and the other by estimating the number of waste bags produced each day (650 kg day(-1)). Furthermore, measurements of the EC(50) parameter in wastewater samples revealed an increased toxicity in all samples. In addition, hazardous organic compounds were detected in wastewater samples using a gas chromatograph/mass spectrograph. Proposals recommending the application of a comprehensive hospital waste management system are presented that will ensure that any potential risks hospital wastes pose to public health and to the environment are minimized.     

Report: Healthcare waste characterization in Chittagong Medical College Hospital, Bangladesh

Healthcare waste management (HCWM) options are inconsistent in Bangladesh. One of the first critical steps in the process of developing a reliable waste management plan requires a comprehensive understanding of the quantities and characteristics of the waste that needs to be managed. This study took into consideration both the quantity and quality of the generated waste to determine the generation rates and physical properties of healthcare waste (HCW) in Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH) and also to estimate the amount of infectious and non-infectious waste generated in different wards. CMCH, the second largest hospital in Bangladesh, comprises 34 wards, 12 of which were selected randomly. Waste materials were collected from these wards and then segregated and weighed. Waste generation per day was found to be 73.22 kg/ward, 1.28 kg/bed and 0.57 kg/patient. A total of 2490 kg of HCW was produced each day in CMCH (37% being infectious and the rest being non-infectious waste). Infectious waste was 27.07 kg per ward, 0.47 kg per bed and 0.21 kg per patient and the non-infectious waste was 46.15 kg per ward, 0.81 kg per bed and 0.36 kg per patient per day. HCW comprised eight categories of waste materials with vegetable/food waste being the largest component (50.21%) and varied significantly (P < 0.05) among the 12 different wards studied. The greatest amount of HCW was recorded (154 kg) in Orthopaedics followed by 96.66 kg in the Medicine Unit-3 and the smallest amount was recorded in Casualty (8.79 kg). The amount of HCW was positively correlated with the number of occupied beds (rxy = 0.79, P < 0.01). There is no structured form of medical waste treatment in CMCH and most waste materials are dumped in open areas for natural degradation or re-sold by scavengers. It is essential to develop a national policy and implement a comprehensive action plan for HCWM that will provide environmentally sound technological measures to improve HCWM in Bangladesh.     

Medical waste production at hospitals and associated factors

This study was conducted to evaluate the quantities of medical waste generated and the factors associated with the generation rate at medical establishments in Taiwan. Data on medical waste generation at 150 health care establishments were collected for analysis in 2003. General medical waste and infectious waste production at these establishments were examined statistically with the potential associated factors. These factors included the types of hospital and clinic, reimbursement payment by National Health Insurance, total number of beds, bed occupancy, number of infectious disease beds and outpatients per day. The average waste generation rates ranged from 2.41 to 3.26kg/bed/day for general medical wastes, and 0.19-0.88kg/bed/day for infectious wastes. The total average quantity of infectious wastes generated was the highest from medical centers, or 3.8 times higher than that from regional hospitals (267.8 vs. 70.3Tons/yr). The multivariate regression analysis was able to explain 92% of infectious wastes and 64% of general medical wastes, with the amount of insurance reimbursement and number of beds as significant prediction factors. This study suggests that large hospitals are the major source of medical waste in Taiwan. The fractions of medical waste treated as infectious at all levels of healthcare establishments are much greater than that recommended by the USCDC guidelines.     

A total quality management approach to healthcare waste management in Namazi Hospital,Iran

BackgroundHealthcare waste comprises all wastes generated at healthcare facilities, medical research centers and laboratories. Although 75–90% of these wastes are classified as household waste posing no potential risk, 10–25% are deemed to be hazardous, representing a potential threat to healthcare workers, patients, the environment and even the general population, if not disposed of appropriately. If hazardous and non-hazardous waste is mixed and not segregated prior to disposal, costs will increase substantially. Medical waste management is a worldwide issue. In Iran, the majority of problems are associated with an exponential growth in the healthcare sector together with low- or non-compliance with guidelines and recommendations. The aim of this study was to reduce the amounts of infectious waste by clear definition and segregation of waste at the production site in Namazi Hospital in Shiraz, Iran.Materials and methodsNamazi Hospital was selected as a study site with an aim to achieving a significant decrease in infectious waste and implementing a total quality management (TQM) method. Infectious and non-infectious waste was weighed at 29 admission wards over a 1-month period.ResultsBefore the introduction of the new guidelines and the new waste management concept, weight of total waste was 6.67 kg per occupied bed per day (kg/occupied bed/day), of which 73% was infectious and 27% non-infectious waste. After intervention, total waste was reduced to 5.92 kg/occupied bed/day, of which infectious waste represented 61% and non-infectious waste 30%. The implementation of a new waste management concept achieved a 26% reduction in infectious waste.ConclusionA structured waste management concept together with clear definitions and staff training will result in waste reduction, consequently leading to decreased expenditure in healthcare settings.     

Report: Treatment of medical waste in Nisava and Toplica districts, Serbia

If there are no clearly defined management procedures, medical waste may represent a source of serious health hazards. Medical waste management was evaluated at the three hospitals in the Nisava and Toplica district, in Serbia. All the stages of existing waste management (segregation, collection, storage, transportation and disposal of waste) were examined by interviewing the personnel involved in the management of waste. The generated waste was a mixture of hazardous and non-hazardous waste. The study found that waste management performance in this district was poor and that there were problems in every stage of management. The results indicate that the waste generation rate was 1.92 kg bed(-1) day(-1) and consisted of 98.7% general waste and 1.3% sharps. Inappropriate segregation practices were the biggest problem and led to increased quantities of general waste. There were no specific regulations for the segregation of the medical waste. None of the surveyed hospitals have a system to refine wastewater and there were no training courses about hospital waste management.     

Hospital waste management in Libya: A case study

In Libya, as in many developing countries, little information is available regarding generation, handling and disposal of hospital waste. This fact hinders the development and implementation of hospital waste management schemes. The specific objective of this study is to present an appraisal of the current situation regarding hospital waste management in Libya. Procedures, techniques, methods of handling, and disposal of waste are presented, as well as the amounts and compositions of hospital waste. This research was conducted in the form of a case study. Fourteen different healthcare facilities in three cities, Tripoli, Misurata, and Sirt, all located in the northwestern part of Libya, were selected for investigation. The investigation showed that the hospitals surveyed had neither guidelines for separated collection and classification, nor methods for storage and disposal of generated waste. This deficiency indicates the need for an adequate hospital waste management strategy to improve and control the existing situation. The average waste generation rate was found to be 1.3 kg/patient/day, comprised of 72% general healthcare waste (non-risk) and 28% hazardous waste. The average general waste composition was: 38% organic, 24% plastics, and 20% paper. Sharps and pathological elements comprised 26% of the hazardous waste component.     

Assessment of medical wastes management practice: a case study of the northern part of Jordan

This study includes a survey of the procedures available, techniques, and methods of handling and disposing of medical waste at medium (between 100 and 200 beds) to large (over 200 beds) size healthcare facilities located in Irbid city (a major city in the northern part of Jordan). A total of 14 healthcare facilities, including four hospitals and 10 clinical laboratories, serving a total population of about 1.5 million, were surveyed during the course of this research. This study took into consideration both the quantity and quality of the generated wastes to determine generation rates and physical properties. Results of the survey showed that healthcare facilities in Irbid city have less appropriate practices when it comes to the handling, storage, and disposal of wastes generated in comparison to the developed world. There are no defined methods for handling and disposal of these wastes, starting from the personnel responsible for collection through those who transport the wastes to the disposal site. Moreover, there are no specific regulations or guidelines for segregation or classification of these wastes. This means that wastes are mixed, for example, wastes coming from the kitchen with those generated by different departments. Also, more importantly, none of the sites surveyed could provide estimated quantities of waste generated by each department, based upon the known variables within the departments. Average generation rates of total medical wastes in the hospitals were estimated to be 6.10 kg/patient/day (3.49 kg/bed/day), 5.62 kg/patient/day (3.14 kg/bed/day), and 4.02 kg/patient/day (1.88 kg/bed/day) for public, maternity, and private hospitals, respectively. For medical laboratories, rates were found to be in the range of 0.053-0.065 kg/test-day for governmental laboratories, and 0.034-0.102 kg/test-day for private laboratories. Although, based on the type of waste, domestic or general waste makes up a large proportion of the waste volume, so that if such waste is not mixed with patient derived waste, it can be easily handled. However, based on infections, it is important for healthcare staff to take precautions in handling sharps and pathological wastes, which comprises only about 26% of the total infectious wastes. Statistical analysis was conducted to develop mathematical models to aid in the prediction of waste quantities generated by the hospitals studied, or similar sites in the city that are not included in this study. In these models, the number of patients, number of beds, and hospital type were determined to be significant factors on waste generation. Such models provide decision makers with tools to better manage their medical waste, given the dynamic conditions of their healthcare facilities.     

Correlation study of hazardous waste characteristics among various chemical processes in Republic of Korea

To harmonize with international standards, the Republic of Korea is in the process of converting its current hazardous waste classification system and setting up regulatory standards for all toxic substances present in hazardous waste. Detailed characterization of each form of hazardous waste belonging to five chemical processes and their correlations were studied. In the present work, the concentrations of 13 heavy metals, F^?, CN^?, 7 PAH compounds, total PCDD/F and 7 PCB isomers present in the hazardous waste generated among chemical processes such as synthetic rubber (SR), man-made fibers (MF), organic dyes and pigments (DP), pharmaceuticals and cosmetics were analyzed along with their leaching characteristics. Comparing all the processes, most of the heavy metal concentrations were high in SR waste. Naphthalene was the dominant PAH in most of the chemical process waste. PCDD/F concentrations of the samples were in the range of 0.001–0.003 ng I-TEQ/g. PCB isomer-101 and isomer-118 were found to be slightly higher than the permissible limit in the SR filter cake sample. SR process wastes doesn’t show any resemblance with the other process waste in either the heavy metals and PAH trend. Each sample from DP and MF were suitable only for hazardous waste landfill.     

Estimation of hazardous wastes from employment statistics: Victoria,Australia

Estimates of hazardous waste production in Victoria, Australia were compared. Empirical estimates based on unit load factors obtained in North America applied fairly well. Estimates based on responses to questionnaires (60%) were about twice as great. The two estimates bracketed observed (incomplete) production data based on deliveries to hazardous waste facilities. Factors which may cause variations to actual waste generation or its estimate have been outlined.     

生物滴滤法处理药厂混合废气的工程实践

建立了生物滴滤现场中试装置,处理某生物发酵类制药厂生产车间和污水处理设施产生的混合废气。该装置28 d挂膜启动成功,对废气中恶臭和VOCs组分有较好的处理效果,能适应现场废气浓度和气量波动的变化。总体而言,喷淋强度对处理效果的影响较小,处理气流量对处理效果的影响较大。当处理气流量大于2 845 m³/h(对应空床停留时间40 s)时,对恶臭和VOCs的去除效果不理想。当处理气流量为2 000 m³/h时,VOCs的最大去除负荷为2.003 g/(m³·h),对应的进气负荷为2.119 g/(m³·h)。对该装置中填料上的微生物进行了高通量测序,发现金属杆菌(Metallibacterium sp.)、硫单胞菌(Thiomonas sp.)、黄杆菌(Fluviicola sp.)、支气杆菌(Cloacibacterium sp.)和嗜酸菌(Acidiphilium sp.)为优势菌种。     

Consumption patterns and household hazardous solid waste generation in an urban settlement in México

Mexico is currently facing a crisis in the waste management field. Some efforts have just commenced in urban and in rural settlements, e.g., conversion of open dumps into landfills, a relatively small composting culture, and implementation of source separation and plastic recycling strategies. Nonetheless, the high heterogeneity of components in the waste, many of these with hazardous properties, present the municipal collection services with serious problems, due to the risks to the health of the workers and to the impacts to the environment as a result of the inadequate disposition of these wastes. A generation study in the domestic sector was undertaken with the aim of finding out the composition and the generation rate of household hazardous waste (HHW) produced at residences. Simultaneously to the generation study, a socioeconomic survey was applied to determine the influence of income level on the production of HHW. Results from the solid waste generation analysis indicated that approximately 1.6% of the waste stream consists of HHW. Correspondingly, it was estimated that in Morelia, a total amount of 442ton/day of domestic waste are produced, including 7.1ton of HHW per day. Furthermore, the overall amount of HHW is not directly related to income level, although particular byproducts do correlate. However, an important difference was observed, as the brands and the presentation sizes of goods and products used in each socioeconomic stratum varied.     

催化氧化技术在橡胶废气处理中的应用

采用催化氧化技术处理热塑性丁苯橡胶( SBS)生产装置D线后处理单元废气,废气的非甲烷总烃去除率和环己烷去除率均达到98％以上,非甲烷总烃质量浓度达到DB11/447-2007《炼油与石油化学工业大气污染物排放标准》的要求(小于100 mg/m3).对SBS生产装置凝聚单元进行两釜流程改三釜流程后,催化氧化反应器入口非甲烷总烃质量浓度由( 3.84～5.82)×103 mg/m3降至( 2.48～2.63)×103 mg/m3,反应器出口非甲烷总烃质量浓度均小于50 mg/m3.凝聚单元改造并采用催化氧化技术处理废气后,每年节约费用约80万元.     

A kinetic analysis of solid waste composting at optimal conditions

Six municipal solid waste (MSW) and yard waste components (food waste, mixed paper, yard waste, leaves, branches, grass clippings) were aerobically decomposed to measure the extent of decomposition under near optimal conditions. Decomposition was characterized by at least two principal stages, for most components, as was indicated by the carbon dioxide production rates. An aerobic biodegradation conceptual model is presented here based on the principle that solids hydrolysis is the rate-limiting step during solid waste composting. The mineralizable solid carbon of each solid waste component was assumed to comprise the readily, the moderately and the slowly (or refractory) hydrolysable carbons, each hydrolyzing at different rates to aqueous (water soluble) carbon. Aqueous carbon mineralizes to CO2 at rapid rates that are not rate-limiting to the process. Solids hydrolysis rate constants were calculated after fitting the experimentally determined carbon dioxide production rate data to model results. Hydrolysis rates for the readily hydrolysable carbon in all components ranged from approximately 0.06 to 0.1 d(-1); hydrolysis rates for the moderately hydrolysable carbon ranged from 0.005 to 0.06 d(-1). Leaves, branches and grass clippings did not have a readily hydrolysable carbon fraction, whilst the leaves and branches had the largest slowly hydrolysable carbon fractions (70%, 82%, respectively, of the total solid organic carbon). Grass and yard waste did not contain slowly hydrolysable carbon fractions. Food waste had the largest readily hydrolysable carbon fraction and produced the highest amount of CO2 among all substrates. Moderately hydrolysable solid carbon fractions ranged from 16% to 90% of the total solid organic carbon for all substrates used.     

Measurement and management of hospital waste in southern Iran: a case study

One of the requirements for development of human societies is the establishment of new healthcare centers. A variety of wastes are generated in healthcare centers depending on the type of activities. This study was conducted to identify, measure and manage different types of hospital wastes as a case study in a hospital located in southern Iran. For this purpose, a questionnaire was initially designed and distributed among the relevant experts to survey the current trend of waste management in the hospital in terms of waste collection, storage and disposal. Afterwards, the hospital waste was sampled during two seasons of fall and winter. The samples were weighted for seven consecutive days in the middle of each season. Approximately, 10 % of the total waste bags per day collected round the clock were selected for further analysis. The obtained results indicated that infectious-hazardous and pseudo-household wastes were, respectively, about 3.79 kg/day/bed, 1.36 kg/day/bed and 2.43 kg/day/bed of the total generated waste in the hospital. As the research findings suggest, proper separation of infectious and pseudo-household wastes at the source would be an essential step towards mitigating environmental and health risks and minimizing the cost of the hospital waste management.     

Evaluation of buckwheat and barley tea wastes as ethanol fermentation substrates

Buckwheat tea waste (BWTW) and barley tea waste (BTW), by-products of the beverage industry, are alternative carbohydrate sources for ethanol production. In this study, optimal enzyme loading for enzymatic saccharification of BWTW and BTW was determined, and simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) was performed by Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Mucor indicus to produce ethanol. Optimal enzyme loading for enzymatic saccharification of 2?% w/v BWTW and BTW was 0.5?% (weight of enzyme/weight of tea wastes) for BWTW and 0.1?% for BTW. Ethanol production from BWTW by S. cerevisiae and M. indicus after 48?h of SSF was 49.9/100?g of BWTW and 47.9/100?g of BWTW, respectively, with 0.5?% enzyme loading. Ethanol production from BTW by S. cerevisiae and M. indicus after 48?h of SSF was 20.5/100?g of BTW and 21.6/100?g of BTW, corresponding to 62 and 66?% of the theoretical yield based on starch content, respectively, with 0.1?% of enzyme loading. Furthermore, S. cerevisiae produced 76?% of the theoretical yield based on the total glucose from starch in BWTW and BTW when a mixture of BWTW and BTW was used as a substrate, with 0.2?% enzyme loading and no additional nitrogen or mineral sources.     

Medical waste management in China: A case study of Nanjing

Medical waste management is of great importance due to its infectious and hazardous nature that can cause undesirable effects on humans and the environment. The objective of this study was to analyze and evaluate the present status of medical waste management in the light of medical waste control regulations in Nanjing. A comprehensive inspection survey was conducted for 15 hospitals, 3 disposal companies and 200 patients. Field visits and a questionnaire survey method were implemented to collect information regarding different medical waste management aspects, including medical waste generation, segregation and collection, storage, training and education, transportation, disposal, and public awareness.The results indicated that the medical waste generation rate ranges from 0.5 to 0.8 kg/bed day with a weighted average of 0.68 kg/bed day. The segregated collection of various types of medical waste has been conducted in 73% of the hospitals, but 20% of the hospitals still use unqualified staff for medical waste collection, and 93.3% of the hospitals have temporary storage areas. Additionally, 93.3% of the hospitals have provided training for staff; however, only 20% of the hospitals have ongoing training and education. It was found that the centralized disposal system has been constructed based on incineration technology, and the disposal cost of medical waste is about 580 US$/ton. The results also suggested that there is not sufficient public understanding of medical waste management, and 77% of respondents think medical waste management is an important factor in selecting hospital services.The problematic areas of medical waste management in Nanjing are addressed by proposing some recommendations that will ensure that potential health and environmental risks of medical waste are minimized.