What do you first think about when someone mentions the word “sharps”? Well, if we exclude musical notes (we are, after all, talking about Key West medical waste management & removal of sharps here, not music), then you probably think about syringes and needles.
And you are not very far from the meaning of the word sharps as it pertains to the medical waste management, but there is more to the word than this. In fact, sharps is a general term used for all medical tools and instruments that can lacerate or pierce the human skin. This includes, among the rest, the already mentioned syringes, needles, scalpels, scissors, lancets, root canal files, razor blades, but also broken glass and microscope slides.
Now, a word about the removal of sharps. Sorry, but you can’t discard these just about any way you feel like it. There are very strict medical waste management federal and state laws and regulations that you need to follow and adhere to when dealing with used needles. These quite clearly say that you have to dispose of sharps in a special hard plastic container immediately after use.
The container I am talking about here is most often referred to as a “sharps container”, but some may call it “sharps box” or “sharps bin”. Don’t get confused by this, it’s one and the same thing.
On Medical Waste Management and Sharps Disposal
Sharps disposal containers are most commonly used in clinics and other health care facilities. These produce sharps waste in the billions. Every area or room in the facility where any kind of sharps are used regularly needs to be equipped with pierce-resistant and leak-proof sharps containers. By doing this, medical workers are able promptly place a used needle or other sharps waste inside the receptacle, without leaving it just lying around ready to get pricked on by someone.
Of course, this is something that is heavily recommended by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, as well as other federal agencies responsible for medical waste management.
Make sure that you place the sharps inside the container right after you use them, but be careful not to overfill it. There should be a fill line designated by the manufacturer usually at ¾ of the receptacle. If you overfill a sharps container, it can lead to puncture or leakage.
If it is not contaminated (for instance, if it’s just a broken glass bottle that contained no biological material), you are free to place it in a cardboard box lined with a plastic liner instead of a sharps container,
Commercial sharps containers have tight-fitting lids with locking mechanisms, so they don’t need any extra security if they are filled properly. However, if you are using a makeshift sharps container made from a bleach bottle or some such, you should secure the container with added duct or packaging tape.
The filled and secured sharps disposal container should then be taken to a pick up spot agreed previously with a medical waste management company you have contracted if you are working in a health care facility, or a dropbox site at a hospital or fire station, if you are an individual. In both of these cases, a collection point for sharps containers ought to be outside of the workspace or in a separate room in it.
Don’t forget to ask the local government administration about the proper Key West medical waste management & removal of sharps methods before you discard your sharps, though.
