Scenario of Medical Waste Management in Bangladesh During Covid-19

Corona virus outbreak has substantially affected the conventional waste management method. As the number of new cases rises, so does the use of medical supplies such as disposable gloves and masks, syringes, and personal protective equipment resulting into a larger bio medical waste production. The study conducted an online survey in Bangladesh with adults aged 18 or older to gather information about the proper disposal of BMW generated at households by COVID-19 affected patients. The research employed a quantitative approach, including Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to identify the factors influencing volume of biomedical waste produced in home quarantine. Patients with mild symptoms under home care across the entire country generated infectious wastes of 2.2 and 0.76 kg/day in urban and rural areas respectively. Among these 63.35% of patients placed their waste in a plastic bag with two layers and labels. Furthermore, only 0.8% of these patients retained infectious wastes for 72 h which is the standard waste disposal method according to WHO guidelines during the pandemic. Among various factors that are affecting the generation of wastes during the quarantine period, 5 principal components are identified by Principal Component Analysis (PCA). It makes the process simple to explore the data set to determine the main variables. The infectious waste that was not handled separately but merged with general waste creates a possible secondary source of contamination. The study shows the lack of the current waste management system practiced in developing countries increases the spread of COVID-19 through infected wastes which may be useful for policymakers in developing nations.