Mochungong Peter I K, Gulis Gabriel, Sodemann Morten
Faculty of Health Sciences, Institute for Public Health, University of Southern Denmark, Esbjerg, Denmark.
Int J Occup Environ Health. 2010 Jan-Mar;16(1):53-9. doi: 10.1179/107735210800546155.
Due to the infectious nature of some clinical waste, poor disposal practices have sparked concern regarding the impact on public health and the environment. Lack of sufficient knowledge of the associated risks may be a strong factor contributing to inadequate disposal practices. We conducted a survey to evaluate hospital workers' awareness of health and environmental impacts of poor clinical waste disposal in Cameroon. We randomly distributed 500 questionnaires to hospital workers in three hospitals in the Northwest Region of Cameroon in April 2008. In addition, we observed collection, segregation, transportation, and disposal of clinical waste at the three hospitals. Of 475 total respondents, most lacked sufficient awareness of any environmental or public health impacts of poor clinical waste disposal and had never heard of any policy--national or international--on safe clinical waste management. Methods of collecting, segregating, transporting and disposing clinical waste at the three hospitals was poor. The development of a comprehensive policy on efficient clinical waste management in Cameroon is imperative.
由于一些医疗废物具有传染性，不当的处置方式引发了对公众健康和环境影响的担忧。对相关风险缺乏足够的了解可能是导致处置方式不当的一个重要因素。我们开展了一项调查，以评估喀麦隆医院工作人员对医疗废物处置不当对健康和环境影响的认识。2008年4月，我们在喀麦隆西北地区的三家医院向医院工作人员随机发放了500份问卷。此外，我们观察了这三家医院医疗废物的收集、分类、运输和处置情况。在475名总受访者中，大多数人对医疗废物处置不当对环境或公众健康的影响缺乏足够的认识，并且从未听说过任何关于安全医疗废物管理的国家或国际政策。这三家医院收集、分类、运输和处置医疗废物的方式很差。制定一项关于喀麦隆高效医疗废物管理的综合政策势在必行。
