Mound of shame to be scrapped

MORE than a month’s hazardous health waste which has accumulated at the Windhoek Central and Katutura State hospitals will be removed from today following an emergency meeting yesterday.

The Ministry of Health, the Windhoek Municipality, the two hospitals and private refuse removal companies in Windhoek reached an agreement late yesterday afternoon with the contracted refuse removal company, Move-a-Mess, to clear up heaps of general and medical waste. The company has refused to collect the waste for the last four weeks.The owner of Move-a-Mess, Johann Van Wyk, earlier told The Namibian that the two hospitals had failed to adhere to the Ministry’s contract with the company.Hospital waste is supposed to be sorted into various categories, from general (household) waste, to waste food and hazardous materials.Move-a-Mess is responsible for collecting general waste, which is supposed to be placed in black refuse bags.However, the company is not responsible for removing hazardous materials or medical waste, which are meant to be placed in different-coloured refuse bags.Amputated limbs, for example, are placed in red bags; soiled linen, scalpels and syringes in green bags and waste food in yellow bags.In a letter by Move-a-Mess to the Ministry of Health earlier this month, the company replied to questions why it had not been removing the rubbish.It stated that hazardous waste was often found at its collection site.Should the company’s removers leave this on the city’s rubbish dumps, it could face a municipal fine or even lose its licence, the company argued.Officials from both hospitals yesterday acknowledged the problem, but said although it was easy to blame a lack of education on the part of hospital staff for the situation, this was not the only problem.The company contracted by the Ministry to supply the hospitals with the different colours of refuse bags does not always deliver on time, and staff cannot allow waste to remain on the floors of wards, one doctor said.”Staff are compelled to use the wrong bags and in the process end up irritating Move-a-Mess,” she said.This problem had recently been sorted out with the contractor, Deputy Director for Logistics at the Ministry Clive Platt said, assuring both the municipality and Move-a-Mess that the problem would not recur.The City of Windhoek said it would be able to accommodate the ad hoc storing of a certain amount of medical waste, excluding pathological waste, in an emergency situation such as this.Van Wyk then agreed that Move-a-Mess would properly sort and remove the refuse bags from the two hospitals, albeit at extra cost to the Ministry.By late yesterday afternoon, the Health Ministry had taken City officials to the two hospitals to familiarise them with the types and quantity of medical waste it would allow on its dumping sites.Also discussed at the meeting was the need for new incinerators, both in Windhoek and in other regions.Only one of the two incinerators in Windhoek is still in working condition, and even this is not performing optimally, Platt acknowledged yesterday.A private company, Genuine Investments, has offered to build a new incinerator outside the residential areas of Windhoek, and the Ministry has agreed that this idea would be discussed further as a long-term solution.Complaints about the current incinerator include the fact that it is situated in a residential area, and that it is being made to handle more than it was designed to.The current incinerator handles waste from both hospitals in Windhoek, as well as from Okahandja and Rehoboth.In addition to this, the problem with the sorting of waste has led to a situation where metal and other items not intended for incineration end up in the oven.Platt says this also reduced the efficiency of the incinerator.The company has refused to collect the waste for the last four weeks.The owner of Move-a-Mess, Johann Van Wyk, earlier told The Namibian that the two hospitals had failed to adhere to the Ministry’s contract with the company.Hospital waste is supposed to be sorted into various categories, from general (household) waste, to waste food and hazardous materials.Move-a-Mess is responsible for collecting general waste, which is supposed to be placed in black refuse bags.However, the company is not responsible for removing hazardous materials or medical waste, which are meant to be placed in different-coloured refuse bags.Amputated limbs, for example, are placed in red bags; soiled linen, scalpels and syringes in green bags and waste food in yellow bags.In a letter by Move-a-Mess to the Ministry of Health earlier this month, the company replied to questions why it had not been removing the rubbish.It stated that hazardous waste was often found at its collection site.Should the company’s removers leave this on the city’s rubbish dumps, it could face a municipal fine or even lose its licence, the company argued.Officials from both hospitals yesterday acknowledged the problem, but said although it was easy to blame a lack of education on the part of hospital staff for the situation, this was not the only problem.The company contracted by the Ministry to supply the hospitals with the different colours of refuse bags does not always deliver on time, and staff cannot allow waste to remain on the floors of wards, one doctor said.”Staff are compelled to use the wrong bags and in the process end up irritating Move-a-Mess,” she said.This problem had recently been sorted out with the contractor, Deputy Director for Logistics at the Ministry Clive Platt said, assuring both the municipality and Move-a-Mess that the problem would not recur.The City of Windhoek said it would be able to accommodate the ad hoc storing of a certain amount of medical waste, excluding pathological waste, in an emergency situation such as this.Van Wyk then agreed that Move-a-Mess would properly sort and remove the refuse bags from the two hospitals, albeit at extra cost to the Ministry.By late yesterday afternoon, the Health Ministry had taken City officials to the two hospitals to familiarise them with the types and quantity of medical waste it would allow on its dumping sites.Also discussed at the meeting was the need for new incinerators, both in Windhoek and in other regions.Only one of the two incinerators in Windhoek is still in working condition, and even this is not performing optimally, Platt acknowledged yesterday.A private company, Genuine Investments, has offered to build a new incinerator outside the residential areas of Windhoek, and the Ministry has agreed that this idea would be discussed further as a long-term solution.Complaints about the current incinerator include the fact that it is situated in a residential area, and that it is being made to handle more than it was designed to.The current incinerator handles waste from both hospitals in Windhoek, as well as from Okahandja and Rehoboth.In addition to this, the problem with the sorting of waste has led to a situation where metal and other items not intended for incineration end up in the oven.Platt says this also reduced the efficiency of the incinerator.