Ebola patients treated at the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit, located at the Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, produced more than 50 pounds of solid waste per day, most of which was personal protective equipment (PPE) worn by healthcare workers, according to an article on the Infection Control Today website.
The unit shared best practices for Ebola waste removal in the December issue of the American Journal of Infection Control.
The unit converted category A waste into category B medical waste to enable safe disposal. The staff transferred all solid waste, including PPE, patient linens and scrubs to a pass-through autoclave system. The waste was then placed in biohazard bags and into rigid packaging to be disposed of as category B medical waste, the article said.
Liquid waste was disposed of into a toilet with hospital-grade disinfectant and held for 2.5 times the recommended time before flushing the waste.
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