Abstract
Background Globally, about 10 to 25% of the volume of bio-medical waste from hospitals and healthcare institutions presents a serious health risks to patients, healthcare personnel, and anybody who comes in contact with it. The waste management practices in Rwanda healthcare facilities are poor and need improvement. Objectives To assess the knowledge and practices regarding bio-medical waste management among healthcare personnel at Kabgayi district hospital in Southern Province of Rwanda. Materials and Methods A cross-sectional study design was conducted. A total of 200 healthcare personnel were selected randomly out of 400 target population including doctors, nurses, social workers, and cleaners. Structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Descriptive analysis using frequency and proportions were used. Chi-Square test was used to determine the association between the variables and level of significance was set at p ≤ 0.05. Results The study found that about half (49.0%) of healthcare personnel had good knowledge about waste management. We found that the majority of healthcare personel 133(66.5%) had poor practices towards bio-medical waste management. The factors associated with good practice were better knowledge on bio-medical waste management (p=0.013) and older age group (p=0.001). Conclusion/Recommendations The level of in both knowledge and practice towards bio-medical waste management among healthcare personnel was low. Continuing education and training programmes and short courses on bio-medical waste management should be carried out to improve the knowledge and practices towards bio-medical waste management among healthcare personnel.
Highlights
About 10 to 25% of the volume of bio-medical waste from hospitals and healthcare institutions presents a serious health risks to patients, healthcare personnel, and anybody who comes in contact with it
The results show that nearly a half (49.0%) of respondents demonstrated a good knowledge about bio-medical waste management control
The findings from this study showed that about a half of respondents (49.0%)had good knowledge about bio-medical waste management process
Summary
About 10 to 25% of the volume of bio-medical waste from hospitals and healthcare institutions presents a serious health risks to patients, healthcare personnel, and anybody who comes in contact with it. Conclusion/Recommendations: The level of in both knowledge and practice towards bio-medical waste management among healthcare personnel was low. Bio-medical wastes management is a current issue and inadequate management of bio-medical waste is a serious concern in many developing countries due to the risks posed to human health and the environment [2] In these countries, the quantity of bio-medical wastes has sharply risen in recent years as a result of rapid population growth and increasing demand for healthcare services. Bio-medical waste management is the most neglected activity of most health service providers, resulting significant exposure to occupational risks among healthcare personnel, high incidence and prevalence of nosocomial infections and environmental contamination [5]. Despite the fact that Ministry of Health and the government of Rwanda have empowered the healthcare services supporting waste management facilities, improper management of bio-medical waste management is still a public health concern
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