Disposing Medical Sharps At Home

Medical instruments that have sharp points, edges, or ends are classified as sharps. They have the ability to puncture or cut your skin. These cuts can be highly dangerous to humans as well as animals. That is why sharps are classified as "biohazardous" wastes. This is the reason that medical sharps disposal is an important process to be carried out.

The main producers of sharps disposal are hospitals, veterinary clinics, tattoo parlors, pharmaceutical companies, and clinical labs. However, have you ever thought that your home can also be a potential sharps waste generator? Wondering how? Well, many homes use medical devices like syringes, insulin shots, and needles on daily basis. These are the sharps that are produced at home. These can be dangerous and hurt the family members as well.

Sharps Generated At Home

The sharps produced at home can pose health and safety threats. If not disposed of in an appropriate manner, it can harm family members, waste collectors, animals, and other members of the community. Sadly, many residents do not understand this and start flushing the used medical syringes down the toilet. These disposed of sharps are very lightweight and floats on water. This causes threats to aquatic life as well as the public. It can cause plumbing issues as it clogs drains. Additionally, these sharps are difficult to remove in the water treatment plants and they float into oceans and beaches.

Therefore, medical sharps disposal is an important aspect even if the waste is generated at home.

Guide to Disposal

Disposing of these products is important. However, it is important to ensure all the steps are done carefully with no ignorance. A little carelessness can lead to a major blunder. Here are the points to keep in mind while disposing of used medical sharps.

• Containers: When the waste disposal is to be done at home, make sure you have rigid containers that have zero changes of puncture. You can use bleach bottles and empty detergent boxes to serve this purpose. Also, make sure they are tightly capped.
• Labels: Before you dispose of them, make sure you put a warning label on them. This will help the workers in handling them with safety.
• Seal: When the container is ¾ full, make sure you cap it and seal it with tape. This will make sure that the contents inside do not spill even over a long period of time.
• Trash Bin: After sealing the container, throw it in the home dustbin for safe disposal. Make sure you don’t add it to the recycling bin else it will damage the recycling machine.

Summing Up

Sharps are a common waste that is being produced by various sectors. Now, due to the sedentary lifestyle people are more prone to diseases and they do use these sharps at home. Therefore, now your homes are also potential waste generators. However, medical sharps disposal is an important part to get rid of them. Following these steps will ensure proper disposal. It will ensure the good and safe health of you and your surroundings. Save animals, humans, and aquatic lives from exploitation.