Evaluation of medical waste management in Al-Diwaniyah governorate hospitals under the corona pandemic

Abstract

Background: Medical waste attracts the world's attention because of its negative effects on the safety of society and the environment. Medical waste management is of great importance due to its infectious and dangerous nature that can cause undesirable effects on humans and the environment. Objective: To assess the sociodemographic, knowledge and attitudes of health workers, cleaning workers, and medical waste administrators among three different hospitals in the Al diwaniya governorate. Methodology: The study was conducted using a cross-sectional survey. A self-administered Arabic language questionnaire was employed to identify cases at random. SPSS Version 21 was used for the analysis. Result: knowledge of all healthcare staff about medical waste management (MW) was insufficient, and attitude levels were weak in all three hospitals. Al-Furat hospital cleaners had average knowledge. The percentage of knowledge in the management of Al-Diwaniyah Hospital was zero, while the other two hospitals had an average rate. Health workers with 1 to 5 years of experience in all establishments have the most knowledge about medical waste. Nurses were the most prevalent job title for dealing with waste. The level of knowledge of the administrative staffوhealth worker, and cleaning workers about medical waste was not up to the required level.