8.08B.340
Infectious Waste
A.
Infectious
Waste Management Plan. Each Infectious Waste Generator (IWG) and Infectious
Waste Storage/Treatment operator (IWSTO) shall develop a written Infectious
Waste management plan with an internal annual review. The plan shall include all aspects of the IWG’s or
IWSTO’s Infectious Waste management. The
plan must be followed by the IWG and IWSTO.
The plan must include a listing of the IWG’s or IWSTO’s Infectious
Control Staff/Committee member(s), phone numbers of responsible individuals,
definitions of wastes handled by the system, Department and individual
responsibilities, procedures for waste identification, segregation, containment,
transport, Treatment, Treatment monitoring, Disposal, contingency planning,
staff/housekeeping training for Infectious Waste identification, when
applicable, and compliance with Infectious Waste regulations.
The plan must be approved by the chief executive officer of the Facility.
The plan shall be available for inspection at the request of the Health
Officer.
B.
Storage
and Containment of Infectious Waste.
1.
Storage
of Infectious Waste shall be in a manner and location which affords protection
from animals, rain and wind; does not provide a breeding place or a food source
for insects or rodents; and is accessible only to Personnel authorized in the
Infectious Waste Generator’s Infectious Waste management plan.
2.
Infectious
Wastes shall be segregated by separate containment from Other Waste at the point
of origin.
3.
Infectious
Waste, except for sharps, shall be contained in disposable leakproof red plastic
bags with a minimum thickness of two (2) mils, and have a strength to preclude
ripping, tearing or bursting under normal conditions of use.
The bags shall be appropriately marked by the generator as containing
Infectious Waste. The bags shall be
secured to prevent leakage or expulsion of solid or Liquid Waste during Storage,
handling or transport. Bags are not recommended for Infectious Waste that cannot be
secured.
4.
Sharps
must be contained in leakproof, rigid, puncture resistant, break resistant,
labeled Containers with lids secured in such a manner to prevent spills during
Storage, handling and transport.
5.
Infectious
Waste contained in disposable bags as described in ICC 8.08B.360.2.c shall be
placed for Storage, handling or transport in Containers such as disposable or
reusable pails, cartons, boxes, drums, or portable bins.
The Containers shall be conspicuously labeled with the international
biohazard symbol, labeled to clearly denote the presence of Infectious Waste
(e.g. “Biomedical Waste” or “Infectious Waste”) or words that clearly
denote the presence of Infectious Waste.
6.
Liquid
Wastes shall be segregated into leakproof, labeled, Containers that are capable
of transporting without spillage, leakage or breakage.
7.
Reusable
Containers.
a)
Reusable
Containers for Infectious Waste Storage, handling or transport shall be
thoroughly washed and decontaminated by an approved method each time they are
emptied, unless the surfaces of Containers have been completely protected from
contamination by disposable bags, liners, or other devices removed with the
waste.
b)
Approved
methods of decontamination include agitation, to remove visible solid residue,
combined with one of the following procedures:
(i)
Chemical disinfection. Chemical
disinfectants should be used in accordance with the manufacturer’s
recommendations for tuberculicidal and viracidal (Polio type 1 or 2, SA
Rotovirus) killing capacities or the disinfectant concentration/contact times
approved in writing by the Health Officer.
(ii)
Other methods approved in writing by the Health Officer.
c)
Reusable
pails, drums, or bins used for containment of Infectious Waste shall not be used
for any other purpose except after being disinfected by procedures described in
this section and after the international biohazard symbol and labels are
removed.
8.
Trash
chutes shall not be used to transfer Infectious Waste.
9.
Unless
approved in writing by the Health Officer, Infectious Waste other than sharps
shall be treated in accordance with 8.08B.350.3 within eight (8) days if said
waste is stored at temperatures exceeding thirty two degrees Fahrenheit(32F) or
zero degrees centigrade (0C), or within thirty (30) days if said waste is stored
at temperatures at or below thirty two degrees Fahrenheit (32F) or zero degrees
centigrade (0C) commencing from the time of generation.
Treated sharps waste shall transported as described in Section 8.08B.120
within ninety (90) days commencing from the time of generation.
Sharps waste treated by Incineration shall be Incineration shall be
treated within ninety (90) days commencing from the time of generation.
10.
Infectious
Waste shall not be subject to compaction prior to Treatment.
11.
Infectious
Waste shall not be placed into the general Solid Waste stream prior to
Treatment.
12.
Treated
Infectious Waste shall be disposed of in bags as described in section ICC
8.08B.350.2.c when disposing at a Solid Waste Facility.
13.
At no
time shall treated sharps waste, be disposed into the general Solid Waste
stream, unless approved in writing by the Health Officer.
a)
Treated
sharps waste, shall be transported separately from the general Solid Waste
stream in approved sharps Container for Disposal at the Sanitary Landfill or
other Facility approved in writing by the Health Officer.
b)
The
transporter of treated sharps waste, must notify the Disposal site operator
prior to transporting the sharps waste to allow for adequate site preparation
and staff availability. The sharps
waste shall be covered with at least six(6) inches of compacted waste material
within twenty-four (24) hours of Disposal.
14.
Physicians
should provide information on proper Infectious Waste and sharps Disposal to
patients that are generators of Infectious Waste.
C.
Infectious
Waste Treatment.
1.
Infectious
Waste (defined in ICC 8.08B.030) shall be treated prior to Disposal by one or
more of the following methods:
a)
Cultures
and Stocks of Infectious Agents and associated biologicals: Steam Sterilization,
Incineration, or other Treatment method approved in writing by the Health
Officer.
b)
Laboratory
Waste: Steam Sterilization, Incineration, or other Treatment method approved in
writing by the Health Officer.
c)
Sharps:
Incineration, containment as defined in this chapter, Steam Sterilization or
other Treatment method approved in writing by the Health Officer.
d)
Pathological
Waste: Incineration, interment, Steam Sterilization or other method approved in
writing by the Health Officer.
e)
Human
Blood and Blood Products: direct pour via a utility sink drain or toilet to an
approved sewage Disposal system, Incineration, or other Treatment method
approved in writing by the Health Officer.
f)
Wastes
that have come into contact with human body substances from patients diagnosed
with infectious diseases: Steam Sterilization, Incineration, or other Treatment
method approved in writing by the Health Officer.
g)
As
determined by the Infectious Waste Generator’s infection control staff Person
or committee, wastes that have come into contact with human body substances
which may create a significant risk of disease: Steam Sterilization,
Incineration, or other Treatment method approved in writing by the Health
Officer.
h)
Animal
Carcasses exposed to pathogens in research: Incineration, or other Treatment
method approved in writing by the Health Officer.
2.
Infectious
Waste Treatment and Disposal shall be one of the following:
a)
Steam
Sterilization
b)
Incineration
c)
Other
Treatment/Disposal method approved in writing by the Health Officer.
3.
Contingency
Planning. Each Infectious Waste Generator and Infectious Waste Storage/Treatment
operator must develop a contingency plan for the Treatment of Infectious Waste.
Provisions must be made for an alternate Treatment plan in the event of
equipment breakdown with an incinerator, steam sterilizer, or other method
approved in writing by the Health Officer, for treating the waste prior to
Disposal.
D.
Transfer
of Infectious Waste To Off-Site Treatment And Disposal Facilities.
1.
Off-site
Transfer. The transfer of Infectious Waste to an off-site Treatment and/or
Disposal Facility must be accomplished in compliance with WAC 480-70-550 and WAC
480-70-560.
2. Reporting of Accidents. Each common or contract Infectious Waste Transporter shall report to the Health Department (679-7350) as soon as possible, but in no event later than 12 hours after any leakage or spillage of Infectious Waste which could endanger the public at the scene of an accident occurring within Island County.