The document summarizes a study that assessed medical waste management practices in hospitals in Mogadishu, Somalia from 2011-2012. The study found that medical waste was not being properly managed and posed health risks. Waste was not being segregated or treated according to WHO standards. There were also no proper policies, training, or oversight of medical waste handling. The conclusion calls for investment in proper waste management systems and regulations to reduce health risks from improper practices.

1. Assessment of the management
and disposal practices of medical
waste in the Hospitals of
Mogadishu city, Somalia
(2011-2012)
by
Ahmed Adam Mohamed Warsame
M.Sc. In public and environmental health
2012

2. Introduction
The safe and effective disposal of medical waste starts with the
health care practitioners, and there is a very need to reduce
both the cost and environmental impacts arising from the
generation and disposal of waste in the hospitals.
Doing further researches in this field is very crucial to explore
more about the risks of the medical waste in Somalia,
identifying the health problems due to the mismanagement of
the medical waste in the hospitals, this even could participate
rising the awareness of the people towards the great risks of the
medical waste and unsafe disposal practices.

3. This study aims to assess the medical waste
management and the safe disposal in the
hospitals of Mogadishu city, examining the
medical waste practices in Somalia and revising
the plans and procedures for medical waste
management, And insuring if there is a policies
procedure, rules and regulations set forth by the
ministry of health or hospital directory to be
followed for managing medical waste in the
hospitals, and discovering the obstacles and
problem for proper medical waste management.

4. Medical waste definition
Very broadly medical waste is defined as any
solid or liquid waste that is generated in the
diagnosis, treatment or immunization of human
beings or animals, in research pertaining thereto,
or in the production or testing of biological” (BAN
& HCWH, 1999)

5. Medical waste classification
The World Health Organization classifies medical or
healthcare waste into communal waste or general waste and
special waste. Communal or general waste is all solid waste
not including infectious, chemical, or radioactive waste. This
waste stream can include items such as packaging materials,
bedding, waste water from laundries, office supplies and
other substances that do not pose a special handling
problem or hazard to human health or the environment
(WHO 1999)

6. Objectives
General objective:
The main objective of this study is to assess the
medical waste management practice, safe disposal
of medical waste in the hospitals of Mogadishu city.

7. Specific objectives
To indicate mismanagement practices of the
medical wastes at the hospitals of Mogadishu
city.
Investigate the problems and constrains in
managing medical waste.
Insuring the existing policies and procedures for
the medical waste management

8. 3.1 Study design
Type of the study was cross-sectional
retrospective hospital based

9. 3.3. Data analysis
The analysis is essentially descriptive
data; the analysis was extracted from
questionnaire and personal interview
carried out by the researcher.

10. Methodology
In the research it is used the descriptive
method, aiming at collecting data from the
hospital staff (doctors, medical assistants
and cleaners) by using questionnaires.
Objective observations and interview also
where used, then analyzing the data in
statistical software.

11. Location
Mogadishu Bandir region Somalia

12. Result

13. The department which generates
the highest amount of waste.

14. The department which generates the
lowest amount of medical waste.

15. Existence of medical waste
committee.
Frequency Percent%
No 30 100.0

16. Segregation of the waste in the
hospitals
Segregation Frequency Percent %
No 30 100.0

17. Disposal methods
Disposal Method Answer
Autoclave N
Incineration N
Land disposal Y
Burial Y

18. Mostly used facilities

19. Symbol labeling of the waste
Symbol Frequency Percent %
No 30 100.0

20. management process when dealing with broken
bags and waste and then decontaminating them
Process Answer
Identification of waste type No
Separation of non-infectious or general waste from No
infectious waste.
Transferring all waste bags on wheeled containers and N0
using utility gloves
Packaging. No

21. Registration of waste
Registering Frequency Percent %
No 30 100.0

22. Mismanagement acts of medical
wastes
The administrators of the three hospitals have
agreed that there is mismanagement acts of medical
waste management, and they justified that they
don’t have the disposal technologies and educated
staff for medical waste management and safe
disposal. Also the administrators indicated that
none of the hospital provides annual education or
training on waste management for the employees.

23. Conclusion
Medical waste must be separated from municipal waste, but in
many parts of Africa it tends to be collected along with the rest of
the waste stream. Poor management of medical waste has serious
health implication to health workers, patients and the public; also,
due to the toxic nature of medical waste, improper handling may
lead to serious health problem, destruction of natural
environment and disturb the balance of the ecosystem. This study
examined the medical waste management practices in three of
the major hospitals in Mogadishu city Somalia, from the results of
the study; it is obvious that medical waste management is not
practiced according to WHO,s recommended standards, where
medical wastes are not properly managed. It is imperative for
significant investment in the proper management of medical
waste in order to reduce the health risk it poses. The researcher
hopes that this study will create the awareness regarding the
problem of medical waste management in hospitals and will
generate interest for systematic control efforts for effective
medical waste management.

24. Recommendations
.
•There must be a separate unit for medical west
management in the hospitals
•Ministry of health should set regulations for
managing medical wastes to be applied in all the
hospital of the country.
•The hospitals should develop clear policy and plans
for proper management of medical waste.
•Ministry of health should supervise a regular
training and education of all workers in dealing with
medical waste, from doctors to cleaners.

25. •It is very important to measure and quantify the
amount of medical wastes generated by each unit
of the hospitals to specify which department or
unit generates the highest and lowest amount of
medical wastes.
•Proper segregation is needed for the general
waste and medical wastes as well as infectious
medical waste and non infectious medical waste.
•The study recommends farther researches in this
area of study.