Aafrin Kidwai 
With preparations underway for the COVID-19 vaccination program across India, the Union Health Ministry has prepared guidelines for safer disposal of used injections. Health experts opine that it will probably create a large amount of syringe waste during the vaccination programme.
For safe disposal of injection waste, the government has asked that the hub of the syringe must be cut immediately after administering the injection using a hub cutter. Cut needles will get collected in the puncture-proof container of the hub cutter,” reports ANI.
“Segregate and store the plastic portion of the cut syringes in the red bag. While plastic wrapper and the cap of the syringe should be treated as municipal general waste, the use of hub cutter should be made correctly, store used cotton swab in yellow bag after administering the injection,” it said.
“Carry the segregated immunization waste generated during outreach sessions and hand these over to the PHC for further disposal. Wash the hub cutters properly with sodium hypochlorite before reuse. Store broken vials in the puncture-proof blue container,” stated the document.
The document has also underlined that all vials (used/empty, unused, and partially used) must be returned through Alternate Vaccine Delivery (AVD) to the vaccine distribution / ILR point, maintaining a reverse cold chain. Completed and signed tally form should also be returned with vaccine carrier. Most importantly, the government has advised the states to ensure that unopened vials should be returned and properly marked and stored immediately at the correct temperature.
Picture Credit: By CDC/ Alissa Eckert, MS; Dan Higgins, MAM – https://phil.cdc.gov/Details.aspx?pid=23312
