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| 1. GAP Hygiène Santé (GAP Hygiene and Health) |
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GAP Hygiène Santé is a research office which brings together environmental experts who work as consultants on:
- Environmental supervision of sites at risk,
- Hydrogeology,
- Complete waste management, particularly waste arising from health care activities.
As regards waste management in particular, GAP Hygiène Santé is a privileged partner of SITA France, SUEZ Environment Group.
The role of engineers and experts at GAP Hygiène Santé is to:
- Carry out feasibility studies, technical studies, audits on existing establishments, etc.,
- Offer solutions, advice, etc.,
- Transfer technology and know-how,
- Set up projects and structures,
- Manage and monitor development.
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| 2. GAP Hygiène Santé - a specialist in medical waste |
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GAP Hygiène Santé puts its expertise at the disposal of health professionals to assist them in building their own waste management system and offers tailor-made solutions devised by teams of specialists for:
- Health establishments: Hospitals, Clinics, Retirement Homes, etc.
- Medical analysis laboratories,
- Health professionals in private practice,
- Self-treatment patients (eg. diabetics) and hospital at home care structures.
There is a very precise legal framework in France and Europe governing waste from health care facilities and GAP Hygiène Santé uses this as a basis when transferring its expertise to a specific country.
This legal framework defines in particular :
- Type of producers,
- Definition of waste type,
- Categories of waste (hazardous and other)
- Means of elimination,
- Norms, classifications and good practices,
- Packaging of waste,
- Storage of waste,
- Control of waste disposal channels,
- Transport of waste,
- Processing.
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| 3. Health establishments |
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A healthcare establishment produces approximately 45 types of waste. Some are classified as hazardous whereas others are not.
3.1 Hazardous waste
This is classified in various categories.
HAZARDOUS HEALTHCARE WASTE
Solid waste :
- Soiled waste: bandages, swabs, etc.
- Pointed, blade or perforating sharp waste: Needles, Blades, Catheters, Razors, Surgical instruments, etc.
Semi-liquid waste
- Biological fluids and blood
- Machines that use biological fluids: bags, drains, etc.
- Products from cell cultures etc.
Liquid waste :
- Liquids used in medical analyses.
Cytostatic waste (cytotoxics) :
- Waste from anticancer treatments.
HAZARDOUS TOXIC AND CHEMICAL WASTE
- Laboratory solvents and reactive liquids,
- Chemical products,
- Radiological waste,
- Dental Amalgams etc.
RADIOACTIVE WASTE :
- Products from diagnostic activities.
3.2 Non hazardous waste
Household refuse and waste which is comparable.
3.3 The management of this waste
The expertise of the specialists at GAP Hygiène Santé is to put in place and optimise waste management in health establishments by :
- Carrying out a precise audit of existing structures (channels, volumes, organisation, etc.)
- Defining in-house sorting procedures,
- Setting up programmes for the elimination of specific products,
- Providing optimal materials, technical means, IT tools and logistics,
- Offering human resources and the most appropriate expertise,
- Controlling costs,
- Planning staff awareness and training programmes,
- Publishing methodological guides,
- Defining labelling procedures
- Implementing tracking procedures,
- Enabling the creation of special structures if required, etc.
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| 4. The wider sector |
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This concerns waste products from health care professionals in private practice or those not working in hospitals, tattoo artists etc, hospital at home patients and self-treatment patients. The latter category can include either local residents or tourists.
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Non-hospital Health professionals
- General practitioners
- Specialists
- Dental surgeons
- Midwives
- Acupuncturists
- Nurses
- Pedicure/Podiatrists
- Veterinary surgeons, ...
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Non-Medical Practitioners (who work on the human body)
- Tattoo artists
- Taxidermists
- Practitioner of Dermography
- Hairdresser
- Beautician
- Embalmer...
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Self-treatment patients
- Diabetes
- Respiratory insufficiency
- Renal insufficiency
- Hepatitis C
- Hepatitis B
- Haemophilia
- Multiple sclerosis
- Heparin treatment
- Home tests
- Drug users, ...
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These medical waste products generated by Non-Hospital health professionals in the wider sector, non-medical practitioners who work on human bodies and self-treatment patients (diabetics, etc.) belong to the “solid” waste category and should not be mixed with household waste because they carry a risk of infection and contamination for those who come into contact with them :
- Within a medical unit : the practitioner and his/her staff may be contaminated by handling soiled material,
- At the patient’s home during home treatment : waste is mixed with household refuse and may cause injury to the patient, the patient’s family and refuse collectors,
- In tourist resorts (hotels, thalassotherapy centres, thermal spas, etc.) : staff and customers may come into contact with waste which could cause injury,
- In communal living areas : there is an added risk for caretakers and maintenance workers prior to collection of waste,
- On the public highway and open spaces (wooded areas and beaches) : both children and adults may be injured by handling abandoned syringes,
- Technical departments : police, fire fighters and refuse collectors who handle this waste are at risk of contamination on a daily basis,
- The environment : when waste is hidden in public tips or when this waste is incinerated under poor conditions.
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| 5. Sorting and packaging |
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Medical waste must be :
- Separated from household waste,
- Packaged in specific, labelled , single-use packaging with specific features :
- A temporary fastening system,
- A permanent fastening system to making it tamperproof and safe for transport,
- A finite filling capacity,
- Handles to facilitate handling.
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| 6. Storage and collection of waste |
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6.1 Storage conditions
Medical waste packaged in compliance with regulations is subject to storage and collection constraints. The volume of waste stored dictates the length of time it can be stored and frequency of collections.
GAP Hygiène Santé is developing a range of “street furniture” in the form of automated waste disposal points for use by individuals - Point CONTAINOR® and PRADAS®.
These enable medical waste from various producers and health establishments to be stored in compliance with regulations.
They can easily be placed in car parks, health establishments, waste disposal centres, technical departments, etc. Authorised access to these containers for the purposes of disposing of waster is gained using a magnetic badge.
GAP Hygiène Santé is now looking to find international partners, distributors and operators.
>> Print the flyer Point CONTAINOR®, PRADAS® Tri and PRADAS® Box.
>> Imprimir la presentación del Point CONTAINOR®, PRADAS® Tri y PRADAS® Box en español.
6.2 Collections
From a starting point of what is already there, GAP Hygiène Santé seeks out all kinds of solutions to optimise the waste logistics of a health establishment or a disposal point such as PRADAS® or Point CONTAINOR®, to ensure that the design is best adapted to the resources available, taking into account legal constraints, processing and recovering channels and specific features of the locality.
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| 7. Processing |
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Waste from medical activities cannot be processed in the same way as household refuse. Incinerators specifically intended for medical waste must include special, approved ovens.
GAP Hygiène Santé offers solutions which are easier and faster to implement, comply with legislation and are less expensive. One of these consists in an initial process of disinfection which reduces contamination and modifies the waste (sharp instruments for example).
Through this type of processing, medical waste can be included in household refuse and therefore follow the same disposal channels. This is referred to as the transformation of hazardous waste.
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| 8. Conclusion |
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GAP Hygiène Santé is the privileged partner for all activities concerned with the environment and the development of innovative solutions and channels specific to the country in question.
Medical diligence should extend from the provision of health care, to the protection of people and the environment.
All developments in household waste management must necessarily lead to developments in medical waste generated both by individuals and professionals and therefore must be dealt with as soon as it is produced at the point of sorting up to its elimination
GAP Hygiène Santé may bid for tenders jointly with local players.
For more details, download the following PDF documents:
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Medical waste, typology, risks
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Diagnosis of waste, monitoring the service
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Inventory, optimisation, services
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