Medical waste: It’s a ticking timebomb for public health

In the labyrinthine alleyways of the port city’s recycling zones, a disturbing trend has emerged that defies both regulations and common sense: The illegal processing and recycling of hazardous medical waste.

The matter isn’t just an affront to the Medical Waste (Management and Processing) Rules of 2008 – it’s a ticking timebomb for public health.

Recent raids by the Department of Environment (DoE) on recycling sites and junkyards in the Mohora and Anandabazar areas have exposed the disturbing reality that medical waste is being recklessly and illegally processed, potentially seeping its toxic remnants into the surroundings.

What’s even more alarming is the possibility that this waste is finding its way back into the market.

Imagine the horror of a recycled medical instrument – originally meant for one-time use and possibly carrying infectious agents – being reused on another patient.

But who is to blame for this perilous chain of events? The DoE’s investigations indicate that the problem is twofold: both at the source and at the disposal.

Accusations have been directed at various hospitals, clinics, and diagnostic centers across the city for their alleged involvement in this illicit trade of medical waste to scrap traders.

One wonders if, behind the façade of sterile environments and the Hippocratic Oath lies a more sinister face of the healthcare industry in Chattogram.

Furthermore, the case of Chattogram Sheba Shangstha, the primary agency responsible for the collection of medical waste from over 200 healthcare facilities, is deeply unsettling.

For an organisation that collects 800-1,200kg of medical waste daily to face allegations of illicit trade is a grim reminder that those tasked with safeguarding public health may sometimes be the very architects of its undoing.

And it is even more unsettling when such an organisation’s ownership is linked closely to the city’s power corridors.

It raises the question: who will guard the guardians?
We urge the authorities, especially the Department of Environment, to expand their investigations and make their findings public.

Moreover, the healthcare industry needs introspection and a reaffirmation of its primary duty; to heal, not to harm.

Chattogram’s public health, and its very future, may depend on it.