Wenlock Hospital ‘TREATS’ Patients for Diseases, Same Time Also ‘CREATES’ Diseases?
Mangaluru : A portion of Government Wenlock Hospital-Mangaluru has turned into a garbage dump site, where pile of garbage is seen lying behind the hospital, near the mortuary. This dumping of waste OPENLY within the premises of Hospital by the authorities concerned could pose serious health hazard to patients and even doctors and other health care staff. Many a times crowd is seen standing very close to this dump site, when they come to see their loved ones brought to the mortuary for post-mortem- and they have to bear all And when Especially when a crowd is gathered near the mortuary when their loved ones a Due to the open garbage, and even few bags ripped open by stray dogs fear of spreading of communicable diseases loom large.
In absence of any effective vigil by the Health Care department and other agencies concerned, disposing of general waste has become a common phenomenon here. There are chances that Sanitation workers who handle the hazardous waste, live in constant fear of getting infected. Experts say that waste from hospital, because you don’t know what’s in it, could trigger life-threatening diseases, including tuberculosis, hepatitis, AIDS and various serious ailments. And in case these garbage bags contain Blood-soaked bandages, bottles, syringes, gloves and other surgical items intentionally or accidentally filled in these bags, thus openly flouting the bio-medical waste management rules, then it is even more hazardous to the garbage collectors.
All human activities produce waste. We all know that such waste may be dangerous and needs safe disposal. Industrial waste, sewage and agricultural waste pollute water, soil and air. It can also be dangerous to human beings and environment. Similarly, hospitals and other health care facilities generate lots of waste which can transmit infections, particularly HIV, Hepatitis B & C and Tetanus, to the people who handle it or come in contact with it. When such is the case, why can’t the hospital authorities dispose these garbage bags in a proper, into a closed garbage dumpster, rather than dump them openly which is more hazardous than the garbage inside a closed bin.
What we see at Wenlock hospital with all these garbage bags dumped openly into a pile, sends a wrong message as to how cleanliness and hygiene this hospital maintains. And Team Mangalorean learnt that when Antony Waste Handling Co skips a day or two in picking up this garbage at Wenlock, then you are looking at huge pile of garbage, and many of the bags being ripped open by stray dogs, where they feed on it, including crows. And now being monsoon, the situation is much more worst, with all this garbage being soaked in water, giving scope for larvae, and resulting in diseases like Dengue and malaria spread by mosquitoes.
While the hospital authorities are very keen in spreading awareness of dengue and its prevention, but when you look at all this garbage dumped openly in the hospital premises, seems like the quote “We Don’t Practice What We Preach”? And while MCC is keen on people not to use plastic bags for garbage, but looking at all these garbage bags piled up behind Wenlock Hospital, I am not quite sure whether the plastic bags used by the hospital is permitted as per the standards or not?
In conclusion, disposal of waste is an environmental concern, and they need to disposed off carefully, without harming others. Leaving garbage piled up openly is a safety hazard especially in a hospital premises. With a few garbage bags ripped open, mixed with stagnant water, I could see bunch of flies and mosquitoes. And as many medical wastes are classified as infectious or bio-hazardous and could potentially lead to the spread of infectious disease, the hospital authorities should be careful in seeing that the garbage dumped here doesn’t contain infectious waste like blood, potentially contaminated “sharps” such as needles and scalpels (and other devices capable of penetrating skin) and identifiable body parts- because the garbage collectors do not use any protective gear and handle it as household waste. This creates a serious health risk. And also that hospital employees move around this dumpsite, which is a very dangerous situation, care should to be taken that all these garbage bags are dumped inside a closed dumpster. Hoping that the concerned people at Govt Wenlock Hospital will do the needful, Team Mangalorean remains thankful in anticipation!
