Knowledge Resources

Project’s technical lessons learnt report. For more information: https://greenhealthcarewaste.org/reducing-upops-and-mercury-releases-from-the-health-sector-in-africa-ghana-madagascar-tanzania-and-zambia

This interim guidance, dated 29 July 2020, supplements the infection prevention and control (IPC) documents by summarizing WHO guidance on water, sanitation, hygiene (WASH) and waste management relevant to viruses, including coronaviruses. For more information: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/WHO-2019-nCoV-IPC-WASH-2020.4. Also available in Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish.

Slides from WHO webinar series on WASH in HCF and COVID-19 in April 2020.

Part A of this guide provides a practical guide for use at the pharmacy bench during the actual preparation of the formulation. Users may want to display the material on the wall of the production unit. Part B summarizes some essential background technical information and is taken from WHO Guidelines on Hand Hygiene in Health Care (2009). Within Part B the user has access to important safety and cost information and supplementary material relating to dispensers and distribution. For more information: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/guide-to-local-production-who-recommended-handrub-formulations

The FAQ document was developed as emergency response on questions on Healthcare Waste (HCW) issues arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Zip file of training materials including segregation, logistics and treatment options in compliance with Stockholm Convention for COVID-19 healthcare waste.

Independent terminal evaluation for the GEF financed regional Africa HCWM project (Ghana, Madagascar, Tanzania and Zambia). For more information: https://greenhealthcarewaste.org/reducing-upops-and-mercury-releases-from-the-health-sector-in-africa-ghana-madagascar-tanzania-and-zambia/

Specifications for personal protective equipment (PPE), consumables, logistic, transport and storage equipment as well as waste treatment equipment for health care waste management. Also considered as best practices for green, sustainable procurement on healthcare waste management, implemented by UNDP GEF regional Africa project.

Technical specifications, for non-mercury containing devices (mercury alternatives) including sphygmomanometers, cuffs, stethoscopes, batteries and digital thermometers; as an example of sustainable, green procurement practices, produced and implemented by UNDP GEF regional Africa project.

This document provides an overview of specific health care waste technologies for the treatment of solid infectious and sharp waste. For each technology, details of its operation, effects on the environment and health, requirements for installation, capacities for treating waste, examples of consumables and advantages and disadvantages are described. For more information: https://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/publications/technologies-for-the-treatment-of-infectious-and-sharp-waste/en/

This document highlights the key aspects of safe health-care waste management in order to guide policy-makers, practitioners and facility managers to improve such services in health-care facilities. It is based on the comprehensive WHO handbook Safe management of wastes from health-care activities (WHO, 2014). Also available in French and Russian. For more information: https://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/publications/safe-management-of-waste-summary/en

Zip folder containing HCWM training modules developed by GEF/Regional Africa project to train master trainers in Africa. Training package includes modules ranging from health care waste treatment, phasing out mercury, sanitation to emergency responses and National Health Care Waste Planning. It also includes training programme and workshop materials.

(Zip file of documents) Also available in Arabic, French, Russian and Spanish.

The I-RAT is a rapid assessment tool (in excel) to obtain an initial indication of the level of healthcare waste management at an individual healthcare facility. The I-RAT is based on WHO’s Rapid Assessment Tool (RAT), which can be found at: https://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/facilities/waste/hcwmtool/en/. Unlike the RAT which evaluates the HCWM situation on a national level, the I-RAT is intended for use at the individual healthcare facility level. Also available in French and Russian.

This document aims to assess and propose recommendations to deal with medical waste management problems efficiently and prevent the potential impact to the health of the people and the environment – with focus on COVID-19 waste generated in health care facilities (HCFs) and laboratories (labs) in Tajikistan.

Madagascar – Overcoming COVID-19 limitations, Remote installation of autoclave in Madagascar. Available at: https://medium.com/@Undpmadagascar/%C3%A0-la-crois%C3%A9e-des-cultures-installation-%C3%A0-distance-dun-autoclave-%C3%A0-toamasina-57a37aa66970

Empowering women makes health systems stronger in fight against COVID-19 in Africa. Also available in French – https://medium.com/@pnudfr/comment-les-femmes-aident-%C3%A0-renforcer-les-syst%C3%A8mes-de-sant%C3%A9-ad0a4e2d7ef2

Summary of support on healthcare waste management in Ghana during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. This included policy briefs shared with the National COVID-19 team, monitoring and enforcement for infection prevention controls and support for local sanitizer producers.

Guidance and examples to replicate and scale up ideas demonstrated by the GEF regional Africa project. 1.Replication of capacity building on HCWM; 2.Replication of the set-up of on-site waste treatment systems; 3.Replication of the set-up centralized waste treatment facilities; 4.Replication of Mercury Phasing out in health facilities; 5.Scaling up of sustainable procurement; 6.Replication of the use of biodigester in health facilities. For more information: https://greenhealthcarewaste.org/reducing-upops-and-mercury-releases-from-the-health-sector-in-africa-ghana-madagascar-tanzania-and-zambia/

For more information: https://www.who.int/activities/supporting-countries-to-protect-human-health-from-climate-change/climate-resilient-health-care-facilities

For more information: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/WHO-2019-nCoV-IPC-WASH-2020.4

病毒 2 的供水、环境卫生、个人卫生和废物管理  针对引发 COVID-19 的严重急性呼吸综合征冠状 临时指导文件 2020年7月29日. For more information: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/WHO-2019-nCoV-IPC-WASH-2020.4

Eau, assainissement, hygiène et gestion des déchets en rapport avec le SARS-CoV-2, le virus responsable de la COVID-19. Orientations provisoires 29 juillet 2020. For more information: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/WHO-2019-nCoV-IPC-WASH-2020.4

Водоснабжение, санитария, гигиена и утилизация отходов в связи с распространением вируса ТОРС-КоВ-2, являющегося возбудителем COVID-19. Временные рекомендации 29 июля 2020 г . For more information: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/WHO-2019-nCoV-IPC-WASH-2020.4

Agua, saneamiento, higiene y gestión de desechos en relación con el SARS-CoV-2, el virus causante de la COVID-19. Orientaciones provisionales 29 de julio de 2020. For more information: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/WHO-2019-nCoV-IPC-WASH-2020.4

The policy brief is intended as a tool to guide establishing regulatory frameworks to ensure the sound management of pharmaceutical solid and liquid waste. The guidance document is to be used by WHO staff, policy makers and inspectors in Ministry of Health (MoH) and Ministry of Environment, pharmaceutical manufacturers and their associations,local municipalities and consumer organizations.

The tools in this worksheet were developed to accommodate rapid assessment of healthcare facilities for capacity to respond to a surge in COVID-19 cases. The indicators were developed from the WHO/UNICEF “Water and Sanitation for Health Facility Improvement Tool (WASH FIT)” (2018) and were modified for COVID-19 response. For more information: https://ee.kobotoolbox.org/x/1981j37g

Health Care Without Harm. For more information: https://noharm-europe.org/documents/health-care-waste-management-coronavirus-update

Interim guidance dated 1 April 2020, WHO recommends member states provide universal access to public hand hygiene stations and making their use obligatory on entering and leaving any public or private commercial building and any public transport facility. It is also recommended that healthcare facilities improve access to and practice of hand hygiene. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/recommendations-to-member-states-to-improve-hand-hygiene-practices-to-help-prevent-the-transmission-of-the-covid-19-virus

15 May 2020 dated interim guidance aims to reduce any role that fomites might play in the transmission of COVID-19 in health-care and non-health care settings. For more information: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/cleaning-and-disinfection-of-environmental-surfaces-inthe-context-of-covid-19

A chart giving various treatment options and considerations for COVID-19 healthcare waste based on different circumstances.

Zip file of factsheets: 1. Introduction to COVID-19 waste management; 2. National medical waste capacity assessment; 3. How to choose your waste management technology to treat COVID-19 waste; 4. Policy and legislation linked to COVID-19 pandemics; 5. Links to circularity – Non-healthcare waste; 6. Linkages of Air quality and COVID-19; 7. Household medical waste management strategies; 8. Disaster and conflict; 9. COVID-19, wastewater, and sanitation. Also available in French, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish. For more information: https://www.unenvironment.org/resources/factsheet/covid-19-waste-management-factsheets

Dated 13 November 2020, this document provides interim guidance on the quality, performance characteristics and related standards of personal protective equipment (PPE) to be used in the context of COVID-19. This includes WHO Priority Medical Devices, specifically: surgical masks, non-surgical masks, gloves, goggles, face shields, gowns and N95 masks. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/WHO-2019-nCoV-PPE_specifications-2020.1

Dated 30 October 2020, it provides interim guidance on the prevention, identification and management of health worker infection in the context of COVID-19. It is intended for occupational health departments, infection prevention and control departments or focal points, health facility administrators and public health authorities at both the national and facility level. For more information: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/10665-336265

For more information: https://www.iswa.org/iswa/covid-19/

Excel sheet indicating the cost of running autoclaves using data drawn from cases in Madagascar and Ghana

Health Care Without Harm – This guide for sustainable procurement, featuring stories and insights from 25 health care organizations around the globe, provides step-by-step guidance, tools, and resources to develop a sustainable purchasing strategy that prioritizes community and environmental health and safety while reducing costs. For more information: https://noharm-global.org/issues/global/why-sustainable-procurement

The purpose of this document is to guide applicants preparing Global Fund funding requests that include interventions related to sustainable healthcare waste management (HCWM). It highlights the general principles that underpin a sustainable healthcare waste management system, outlines the scope of Global Fund support and provides information on best practices in HCWM. For more information: https://www.theglobalfund.org/en/funding-model/applying/resources/

Summary of COVID-19 Rapid Assessment (conducted by Engineers Without Borders – EWB) for the prevailing health care waste systems, legal framework, and the development of a generic strategy to improve Health Care Waste Management, with assessment of surveys to the government, private and public service providers and healthcare facilities in seven countries with separate annexes of country specific reports: Ghana, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Panama, Serbia, Sudan,  Zimbabwe.

Video – Jointly organized by UNDP’s HIV, Health and Development (HHD) and Nature, Climate Change and Energy (NCE) teams. Presenters are Saleban Omar (UNDP HHD), Jan-Gerd Kühling (UNDP Consultant) and Ute Pieper (WHO and UNDP Consultant).

Webinar presentation on the integrated rapid healthcare assessment at the peak of COVID-19 from November 10, 2020 with main findings, recommendations and lessons learnt from Ghana.

Summary: Approaches to Health Care Waste Management – GAVI, Global Fund, Global Drug Facility, Health Care Without Harm, UNDP, UNICEF, WHO and GEF. 8 OCTOBER 2019, GLOBAL HEALTH CAMPUS, GENEVA.

Zambia – Promoting non-incineration healthcare waste treatment technologies and phasing down mercury-containing products from health facilities. Accessible at: https://undpinzambia.exposure.co/tackling-zambias-medical-waste-problem

The purpose of this survey is to gather data in order to: (1) assess potential mercury exposures of health workers and patients in different parts of healthcare facilities; (2) identify areas where ambient air mercury levels are higher than background levels in healthcare facilities that use mercury devices; and (3) evaluate residual ambient air mercury levels in facilities that have phased out mercury devices. Also available in: Spanish, Arabic and Russian.

Independent evaluation of project’s midterm progress. For more information: https://greenhealthcarewaste.org/reducing-upops-and-mercury-releases-from-the-health-sector-in-africa-ghana-madagascar-tanzania-and-zambia/

Project’s case study in Ghana related to ZoomPak Central Treatment Facility in Accra

The curriculum covers HCWM practices including the handling of mercury waste, financing and budgeting, gender mainstreaming, tools for rapid assessment of HCWM capacity, and International Conventions and National HCWM laws.

A literature review compiled of 110 published articles, reports, and case studies from both scientific journals and grey literature that specifically focus on water, sanitation, hygiene, cleaning, and waste management in healthcare facilities in low-and middle-income countries. They are organized by prevailing theme: conditions & infrastructure, monitoring, implementation, health systems & enabling environment, sustainability, costing, behaviors, care-seeking behaviors & patient satisfaction, healthcare-associated infections & antimicrobial resistance, cleaners, accessibility, gender, and enterprise.

This toolkit (made possible by Global Green and Healthy Hospitals – GGHH hospitals, partners and academicians), is ultimately developed to help health facilities and the health care sector confront the plastic pollution, change the narrative, introduce solutions and alternatives and work together for a healthier, more sustainable planet for the next generation. Health Care Without Harm, for more information: https://noharm-uscanada.org/articles/news/asia/plastics-toolkit-hospitals-mobilizing-healthcare-prevent-plastic-pollution

Independent mid-term evaluation of GEF financed UNDP implemented project in Kenya. Project website: http://www.upops.environment.go.ke