Disposal of clinical waste

Five groups of clinical waste are identified in Safe Disposal of Clinical Waste (Health Services Advisory Committee 1999).

Group A - includes the following items: identifiable human tissue, blood, animal carcasses and tissue from veterinary centres, hospital or laboratories. Soiled surgical dressing, swabs and other similar soiled waste. Other waste materials, for example from infectious disease cases, excluding any in groups B to E.

Group B - discarded syringe needles, cartridges, broken glass and any other contaminate disposable sharp instruments or items.

Group C - microbiological cultures and potentially infected waste from pathology departments and other clinical or research laboratories.

Group D - drugs or other pharmaceutical products.

Group E - items used to dispose of urine, faeces and other bodily secretions or excretions which do not fall within Group A, this includes used disposable bed pans or bed pan liners, incontinence pads, stoma bags and urine containers where there is no risk of blood contamination, and where a suitable risk assessment has been carried out.

However, the legislation now means that Category E waste can be disposed of with your normal household waste. This also includes commercial waste collected from our customers which can be collected in our bins as a mixed load.

Other category clinical wastes as above need to be collected by a specialist company. Please note that Salford City Council are not licenced to remove clinical waste from your premises.

This page was last updated on 25 January 2012