The Role of Education in Reducing the Disposal Costs of Anesthesia-Related Medical Wastes

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Although it constitutes a small part of the general waste, medical waste management is important both due to its environmental impact and its cost. Creating education and awareness on reducing the amount of medical waste and increasing the amount of waste-recycling are some of the most important steps. The primary purpose of the study is to determine the role of education in reducing the cost of medical waste belonging to anesthesia, and the secondary purpose is to provide data for the development of educational materials used. METHODS: The anesthesia wastes of 22 operating rooms and 3 PACU were evaluated.Anesthetic wastes were collected and weighed at the end of the day without informing 26 anesthesiologists, 37 anesthesia technicians, and 30 anesthesia assistants.On the 2nd day, the education video link was shared with the participants, and afterwards they were asked to watch and answer the questionnaire prepared.The wastes were collected and weighed again after the training.The approximate annual saving cost was calculated over the medical waste disposal cost, which was determined as 3.50 ₺kg-1 (excluding VAT). RESULTS: The amount of anesthesia waste obtained from 22 operating rooms and 3 PACU was 36.90 kg for 57 cases before training, and 43.36 kg for 64 cases after training.The amount of medical waste was weighed as 461.2 g per case before the training, and 453.8 g per case after the training.It was observed that although not statistically significant, the amount of medical waste decreased (p=0.949).The cost of medical waste disposal decreased by 1.6%. It was learned that 51.3% of the anesthesia team had received training before, and 60.4% benefited from the training provided. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: With education, the amount of medical waste can be reduced.Although there is awareness about waste classification in our clinic, we believe that regular training should be done to reduce the amount of medical waste.