Global Perspectives on Healthcare Waste Management and Bibliographic Mapping during the Crises of COVID-19

Abstract

The lack of proper waste management of health care facilities can have a significant negative health impact on the global population. This study provides a critical view on the current state of the existing healthcare waste management practices used in healthcare facilities around the world during the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic outbreak. The increasing amount of COVID-related healthcare waste was analyzed and classified to provide justification for the urgent need to develop waste management standards that ensure safe containment and diversion of hazardous and non-hazardous wastes through recycling, reuse and repurposing. The waste handling, treatment, and disposal management of healthcare waste from various COVID-infected locations such as homes, quarantine centers, camps, and hospitals have been reviewed. A total of 100 documents on COVID-19 related healthcare waste were published on the Web of Science database over the 2020-2022 period. Innovative solutions for effective waste treatment and disposal, related government policies and regulations, and literature survey supported by VOSviewer-aided detailed bibliographic analysis are presented and critically discussed. Thus, the present research output advocates for a paradigm shift towards circular economy principles in healthcare waste management, emphasizing waste reduction, recycling, and recovery, and encourages global cooperation to develop resilient, crisis-responsive waste management systems.