What Is Pathological Waste and How Should It Be Disposed Of?
Pathological waste is a type of medical waste commonly found at hospitals, veterinarian offices, medical laboratories, and other health care centers. Generally, waste that consists of bodily fluids such as organs or other body parts is considered pathological materials. Properly disposing of pathological materials requires an experienced and highly trained team of pathological waste disposal specialists.
At INGENIUM, we understand the importance of cleaning away pathological waste. Proper healthcare waste management is critical for protecting the well-being of patients and medical staff as well as staying compliant with local and federal guidelines. INGENIUM specializes in hazardous wastes disposal and makes it easy for medical facilities to remove unwanted pathological materials.
Disposing of pathological waste requires strict safety procedures to comply with state and federal regulations. Improper disposal can lead to hefty fines, severe penalties, and an increased risk of illness or injury.
INGENIUM knows the value of a trustworthy company and is here to help you navigate the complex legal regulations. In addition, we will help ensure that you properly segregate your medical waste while providing professional disposal services.
Understanding the unique characteristics of pathological materials is essential for proper handling and disposing of them.
What Is Considered Pathological or Medical Waste?
Pathological waste, or anatomical waste, is a specific type of medical waste. However, medical waste is a broad term that refers to a wide array of hazardous materials from medical facilities.
Medical waste can include needles, syringes, pharmaceutical drugs, rags, and other medical items. Essentially, any items used by medical professionals for patient treatment are considered medical waste.
Pathological waste, on the other hand, is the type of medical waste that consists of bodily fluids or body parts.
- Tissues
- Organs
- Surgical specimens
- Body fluid
- Animal body parts
- Human body parts
- Blood specimens
Pathological waste can come from surgical centers, veterinarian offices, and other healthcare providers. Proper disposal of these items is critical to maintaining a clean and healthy facility while staying compliant with federal and state regulations. Pathological materials are often infectious and require specific procedures to ensure safe disposal.
Types of Medical Hazardous Waste
Proper segregation of your medical waste is critical for storage and effective medical waste disposal. It is essential to store each category in separate containers when dividing medical waste to prevent cross-contamination. Improper waste segregations can lead to potentially infectious health hazards and failure to comply with federal and state governments.
Medical waste comes in five main categories.
- Biohazardous waste:Biohazard waste requires the label to read “Biohazardous Waste” or the word “biohazard” with the international biohazard symbol.
- Chemotherapy waste: This refers to waste that comes from chemotherapy drugs. The label must read “CHEMO” or “chemotherapy waste.”
- Pharmaceutical waste: This refers to unused or leftover drugs. The pharmaceutical waste container’s label should read “high heat” or “incineration only.”
- Sharps waste: Sharps waste generally consists of needles and syringes. Labels for sharps waste should read “sharps waste” or “BIOHAZARD” with the international symbol for biohazard.
Properly labeling and segregating biomedical waste is just the first part of meeting compliance standards. When it comes to dangerous material disposal techniques, INGENIUM can help you with the disposal of pathological waste.
The medical-biological waste labels help us determine how to dispose of certain waste. With special handling materials and a highly experienced team, INGENIUM offers safe and effective disposal services to a wide range of medical waste generators.
If you are unsure how to label your leftover medical materials, check with your state’s regulations or contact the INGENIUM team.
Medical Pathological Waste Collection and Disposal Services
Handling and disposing of medical and pathological waste requires a highly trained and experienced team of hazardous materials specialists. It is the responsibility of the medical waste generating facility to ensure proper segregation and storage that follow general guidelines. Medical waste disposal, however, is best left to professionals.
At INGENIUM, we handle a wide range of hazardous material management from various facilities. In addition, we follow strict local and federal guidelines to ensure the compliant and safe disposal of biomedical waste.
When INGENIUM handles your healthcare waste disposal, we take the utmost precaution to ensure safety and proper waste segregation. Once we collect the pathological materials, we transport them to a nearby disposal facility. Upon final disposal, we send you a receipt confirming the successful disposal of pathological waste.
Safe Disposal of Hazardous Pathological Waste
Pathological materials often consist of potentially infectious material that could threaten the well-being of others if not properly contained.
Bodily fluids and infectious agents make pathological waste especially difficult to store and dispose of. Pathological waste can range from animal carcasses to anatomical waste.
Categorizing medical waste requires the consideration of various factors. The first thing to consider is whether or not the hazardous waste has come into contact with chemotherapy drugs. Chemotherapy waste is especially hazardous and requires its own separate container.
Pathological waste that consists of body parts or fluids requires extra careful storage. Pathological or anatomical waste can contain various bodily fluids with infectious agents. It is critical to place pathological waste into leak-proof containers to ensure the proper containment of pathogenic agents.
Double bagging the pathological materials with adequate plastic may also be necessary for medical waste disposal and storage.
To further increase safety and ensure proper waste segregation, it is imperative to correctly label waste streams. Medical facilities and surgery centers handle a significant amount of pathological and hazardous waste. It is vital to safely separate the regulated medical waste to ensure proper disposal and prevent cross-contamination.
Incineration is the only form of pathological waste disposal. Incineration guarantees that hazardous medical waste cannot contaminate or infect other materials, so it is critical to remember to label your pathological waste containers with “incineration only” stickers.
Federal and State Government Compliance
Following both state and federal regulations when handling or disposing of hazardous wastes is essential for safety and avoiding strict penalties.
Federal Guidelines
The Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, established the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) in 1976. This act enabled the EPA to set strict regulatory standards for regulated medical waste.
The RCRA ensures that hazardous waste generators properly store and handle hazardous materials. In addition, the EPA, along with the National Institute of Health, establish strict definitions for the various categories of medical waste. Segregating medical waste according to these definitions and guidelines is essential for compliant waste management.
State Regulations
State guidelines are not always in line with federal regulations. Surgery centers, veterinarians, and other healthcare facilities that handle pathological waste must be aware of their state’s specific regulations.
Some states may require regular reports on a facility’s hazardous waste activities. Failure to meet state or federal regulations often results in strict fines and liability consequences.
Improper segregation or disposal of pathological waste can result in a hefty fine from different organizations. Depending on the severity of the situation, you can face up to $70,000 in fines, not including government penalties.
Complying with state and federal regulations is essential for avoiding fines; however, improper pathological waste management can result in more than severe penalties.
Medical waste is especially hazardous as it contains infectious materials. Properly disposing of pathological and medical waste protects employees, patients, customers, and other individuals.
Hazardous Waste Removal Services
From surgery centers to veterinarian clinics, healthcare facilities have several responsibilities to handle every day, and it can be challenging to remember all of the state and federal regulations required for your facility. INGENIUM can help.
INGENIUM is the leading hazardous materials disposal team with a complete understanding of federal and local regulations. We will help you ensure that your hazardous materials are correctly labeled, secured, and disposed of.
Contact an INGENIUM representative today to learn more about our hazardous waste disposal services or fillout our risk assessment form to get started.