Coronavirus and Clinical Waste Solutions

Coronavirus Impact In light of the global Coronavirus outbreak, Public Health England has issued advice to the public on how to deal with potentially infectious waste. Whilst current experts have stated that the process of waste disposal is largely 'business as usual', the demand for these products have soared, much like PPE. This means that it has been more difficult for treatment centres and hospitals to follow the waste guidelines appropriately as their suppliers have struggled to fulfil demand. At J W Products, we have made it a priority to ensure that our customers are receiving the exact number of products that are needed, as and when, in order to ensure hospitals are able to safely and securely dispose of infectious waste. Public Health England recommends all waste that has been in contact with any self-isolated individual should be double-bagged and tied to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The waste should not be disposed of or put out for collection until it is known the potential patient does not have Covid-19. The Public Health England advice reads: “Waste from possible cases and cleaning of areas where possible cases have been (including disposable cloths, tissues, and masks if worn) should be put in a plastic rubbish bag and tied when full. The plastic bag should then be placed in a second bin bag and tied.” Further advice has been issued for the public and for hospitals on what to do with the bags once full. PHE has said: “It should be put in a suitable and secure place and marked for storage until the individual’s test results are known. Waste bags should be double bagged and secured with a tie. “If the individual test is negative, this can be put in with the normal waste. “If the individual tests positive, then place bags in orange or yellow containers or bags and arrange disposal as category B waste.” Samples of materials such as blood, tissue, excreta and secreta collected from humans or animals are classified as category B infectious waste. The government health agency also warned that waste should only be collected by those authorised to do so. It said: “Arrangements need to be made for collection by an appropriate organisation (for example a licensed waste contractor acting on behalf of the local authority).” Clinical Waste Bags Our clinical waste bags are printed with all mandatory regulation for the sealing of hazardous or infectious waste. JW Products clinical waste sacks have high breaking strengths to prevent full bags from ripping or breaking. Other features include: Available in yellow for hazardous waste or orange for infectious waste 80L capacity Printed alignment with UN regulations and requirements Available in 8kg or 10kg breaking strength In-stock and ready for immediate dispatch Below are the categories as detailed in the European Waste Catalogue (EWC) classification 18 01 wastes: INFECTIOUS AND POTENTIALLY INFECTIOUS WASTE Orange bags with printing: for treatment at a licensed or permitted facility – EWC no. 18 01 03* UN number UN3291. Waste whose collection and disposal is subject to special requirements in order to prevent infection. Disposal method: licensed or permitted treatment facility. HAZARDOUS WASTE FOR INCINERATION BAGS Yellow bags with / without printing: for transporting and incinerating category A waste, categorised as hazardous under the EU Transportation of Hazardous Goods regulations and required to be transported in bags or containers that comply with UN packaging requirements. Disposal method: incineration. Clinical Waste Seals The fastening and securing of clinical waste bags must adhere to a strict standard operating procedure, implemented by all NHS hospitals across the country. All clinical waste bags and Offensive waste bags must be tied using the swan neck method shown. In the event that a swan neck cannot be achieved due to overfilled bags, the contents must not be removed and the bag should be suitably sealed ensuring no contents can escape. If this cannot be achieved then the whole bag must be placed into a larger bag and a swan neck method used to tie the bag. If a swan neck tie cannot be achieved report overfilled bags to clinical lead of the area concerned. All Clinical waste and Offensive waste bags must be tagged with a unique identity tag to determine the origination of the waste and its tracking throughout the disposal chain. Our printed clinical waste ties are the widely adopted solution to individually identify bags of waste and trace them back to their source. All traceable waste ties are printed with identifiers such as hospital names, wards or departments. These ties can be repurposed to suit other applications, with other printing options such as company names, telephone numbers and postcodes. Alongside the custom element, we also print sequential numbering on all of our waste ties, which will follow on from your previous order, meaning no duplication of numbering. There are also a variety of sizes available to suit your application needs and a range of colours to allow for quick identification of source, even when there is a range of waste ties being circulated within an organisation. Each pack of waste ties is supplied with a label on their packaging which shows the number range enclosed and identifies which hospital, ward or department the ties are allocated to. Shop Clinical Products You can purchase our clinical waste bags here: https://www.jwproducts.co.uk/product/clinical-waste-sacks-80l/ You can purchase our printed clinical waste seals by clicking here: https://www.jwproducts.co.uk/product-category/security-seals/clinical-waste-seals/ You can purchase a range of Medical Transports bags by clicking here: https://www.jwproducts.co.uk/product-category/security-packaging/clinical-transport-bags/  If you require a more bespoke option, you can use contact us by visiting the quote page here or alternatively you can call our sales team on +44 1252624305.