The country not only has to deal with the mountain of trash, particularly discarded plastics, generated by households every day. There is also a significant volume of healthcare waste generated by hospitals that poses health risk to the population. A multisectoral project to address such problem will start initially in six hospitals using toxic-waste treatment technology, medical equipment recycling system and safe disposal practices.

Under the Philippine Healthcare and Mercury Wastes Management Project (HCWMP) of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Department of Environment and Natural Resources – Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB), Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the non-government organization BAN Toxics, environmentally sound, sustainable, and non-incineration methods of disposing healthcare waste, including mercury, would be used to reduce emissions and releases of organic pollutants.

HCWMP also will ensure the safe and final disposal of mercury stockpiles from phased-out medical devices, in line with the country’s commitments to the phaseout of the toxic chemical and sound chemicals management.

“The majority of healthcare waste, if it’s not treated properly, if it’s burned, it emits dioxins and furans. These dioxins and furans are cancerous. It can cause serious illness,” warned Jam Lorenzo, BAN Toxics deputy executive director and project manager, at the conclusion of the three-day HCWMP national workshop conducted by his organization, DENR-EMB, GEF and UNIDO at the Seda hotel in Quezon City on 15 January.

“So under the project, we will give direct investments of non-burn technologies. These are the technologies that can treat the waste without the need to burn them,” said Lorenzo, referring to room-size autoclaves and microwave sterilization machines.

The non-burn machines sanitize personal protective equipment (PPE) such as masks, gloves and gowns; dressings and bandages; disposable medical plastics; sharps (after shredding); and pathological waste for safe handling, disposal and incineration.

Up to 80 percent of healthcare waste is single-use plastic so these would be replaced with reusable versions under the HCWMP, according to Lorenzo

The five-year project is targeting to treat an initial 18,000 tons of healthcare waste per month from six hospitals that generated the highest volume of medical waste during the Covid-19 pandemic and where majority of the population go, he added. They are Cagayan Valley Medical Center in Region 2, Quirino Memorial Medical Center in the National Capital Region, Eastern Visayas Medical Center in Region 8, Northern Mindanao Medical Center in Region 10, Southern Philippines Medical Center in Region 11, and CARAGA Regional Hospital in Region 13.

If the six hospitals meet the project’s expectations, the volume of toxic healthcare waste in the country would be significantly reduced, Lorenzo said.

The GEF will fund the acquisition of the giant autoclaves while the hospitals will shoulder the cost of operating them through co-financing agreements, he said. The size of the machines to be deployed to each of the six hospitals depends on the volume of medical waste generated which is still being finalized by the project’s implementers.

The project manager said that once the hospitals reduce the waste they generate, their current budget for management of waste will decrease.

“In the long run, our hospitals will still be able to save money,” he said.

Meanwhile, more than 100 representatives from partner hospitals, national and local government agencies, and civil society organizations attended the HCWMP workshop where they also launched the Toxics-Free Hospitals Campaign. The campaign introduces key project interventions such as improved waste segregation, reduction of single-use plastics, promotion of reusable face masks and other PPEs, adoption of low- or zero-emission waste treatment technologies, and capacity-building on environmentally sound management of infectious and other healthcare wastes.

“Promoting toxics‑free and proper waste initiatives in healthcare facilities and beyond supports sustainable practices, encourages responsible production and consumption, and requires collaboration across government, industry, and communities to protect public health and the environment,” said OIC Assistant Secretary for Environment and EMB director Jacqueline A. Caancan.

Caancan and Department of Health–Health Facility Development Bureau director Dr. Melissa Sena signed a memorandum of agreement to implement the campaign during the workshop.

As part of the Toxics-Free Hospitals campaign, the project’s character named Nurse Susie was launched. The character will promote environmental sustainability in healthcare as well as encourage saying no to single-use plastics, adopting reusables, and raising awareness of toxic chemicals in healthcare waste. Nurse Susie serves as a friendly guide for promoting the campaign’s 4Cs framework — change old habits, cut plastics, commit to reuse, and champion sustainability.