Hazardous and Non-Hazardous Waste

Hazardous waste can:

• Be absorbed through the skin into the bloodstream

• Be inhaled as fine particles into the lungs

• Burn the skin

• Cause harm to the fetus (teratogenic substances)

How many pairs of gloves must be worn when handling hazardous waste?

2 pairs of gloves

Reverse Distributor

An agent who acts as a ‘middleman’, who collects controlled substances or pharmaceutical waste from registrants and either returns them to the manufacturer or arranges for their disposal

What are non-hazardous waste disposed in?

Blue or white bins

Types of non-hazardous waste:

• IV solutions

• Ringer’s lactate solution (Hartmann’s solution)

• Saline

• Dextrose

Disposal of hazardous waste must comply with

Environmental Protection Agency

P-list pharmaceutical waste includes:

• Warfarin

• Nicotine patches, gum, or lozenges

• Physostigmine

• Arsenic trioxide

• Nitroglycerin

• Epinephrine

U-list pharmaceutical waste includes:

• Lindane

• Selenium sulfide

• Chloral hydrate

• Mitomycin C

• Formaldehyde

• Benzene

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

• Ignitability

• Toxicity

• Corrosivity

  • Reactivity

Ignitability

Include liquids with flash points below 60-degree Celsius, non-liquids that cause fire through specific conditions, ignitable compressed gases, and oxidizers

Toxicity

Harmful when ingested or absorbed. Toxic wastes present a concern as they may be able to leach from waste and pollute groundwater

Corrosivity

Include aqueous wastes with a pH of less than or equal to 2, a pH greater than or equal to 12.5 or based on the liquids ability to corrode steel

Reactivity

May be unstable under normal conditions, may react with water, may give off toxic gases and may be capable of detonation or explosion under normal conditions or when heated. EPA assigned D003 as the waste code for reactive hazardous wastes

Negative Pressure Environment

Has a lower air pressure within it, meaning that outside air flows into the room but any inside air that attempts to flow out of the room must pass through a filter

Safety data sheets are written by the manufacturer, who outlines details on:

• Associated hazards with the drug/chemical

• How the drug/chemical should be handled

• What clean-up procedures should be followed in the event of spillage or exposure

• What PPE, or personal protective equipment, should be worn

• First-aid measures to be followed if workers are harmed through exposure

• Physical and chemical properties of the drug/chemical

• How the drug/chemical should be optimally, and safely stored

• Fire-fighting measures, in cases of ignition

Any inadvertent exposure to hazardous substances must first be documented using an

Initial Incident Report