Quantity of Healthcare Waste Generated by Health Facilities in Urban Bauchi, Bauchi State, Nigeria
Authors: Ali AF, Bako SM
DOI Info: http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5047859
ABSTRACT
The basis for effective medical waste management strategy is the availability of suf?cient and accurate data on the waste generated. This study aimed to determine the quantity of waste generated by healthcare facilities in urban Bauchi. Stratified random sampling technique was used, in which the area was divided into ten (10) strata which represent the ten (10) administrative wards of urban Bauchi namely, Dan Iya, Birshi, Makama A, Dan Amar A, Dan Amar B, Makama B, Tirwun, Dan Kade, Dawaki and Hardo wards respectively. Among each ward, one (1) hospital was purposively selected and labelled as A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I and J, to preserve their identity. Weighing balance was used to determine the quantity of each type of waste generated per day in each hospital. The total quantity of waste generated were weighed together each day for a week prior to disposal at dumpsites. The results show that, the average quantity of healthcare waste generated per day at hospital A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I and J are 200.8 kg, 30.4 kg, 15.2 kg, 11.1 kg, 10.7 kg, 8.5 kg, 14.9 kg, 3.6 kg, 8.8 kg and 21.8 kg respectively. The average waste generation rate for all the sampled hospitals was calculated as 32.6 kg/day and 0.6 kg/bed/day. It is recommended that proper documentation pertaining to the quantity of waste generated in the hospitals need to be improved.
Affiliations: Department of Environmental Management, Faculty of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Bayero University, Kano, Kano State, Nigeria.
Keywords: Medical Waste Management, Healthcare Facilities, Health Care Waste, Hospital Waste, Waste Generation, Bauchi
Published date: 2021/06/30
