title: Practices and challenges of infectious waste management: A qualitative descriptive study from tertiary care hospitals in Pakistan.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Infectious waste management practices among health care workers in the tertiary care hospitals have been questionable. The study intended to identify issues that impede a proper infectious waste management.
  
  
  METHODS
  Besides direct observation, in-depths interviews were conducted with the hospital administrators and senior management involved in healthcare waste management during March 2014. We looked at the processes related to segregation, collection, storage and disposal of hospital waste, and identified variety of issues in all the steps.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Serious gaps and deficiencies were observed related to segregation, collection, storage and disposal of the hospital wastes, hence proving to be hazardous to the patients as well as the visitors. Poor safety, insufficient budget, lack of trainings, weak monitoring and supervision, and poor coordination has eventually resulted in improper waste management in the tertiary hospitals of Rawalpindi.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Study has concluded that the poor resources and lack of healthcare worker's training in infectious waste results in poor waste management at hospitals.
authors.affiliation: Ramesh Kumar, PhD. Assistant Professor, Department of Health Systems and Policy, Health Services Academy, Islamabad, Pakistan. College of Public Health Sciences, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.
authors.forename: Ramesh
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kumar
authors.affiliation: Babar Tasneem Shaikh, PhD., FRCP, Associate Professor, Department of Health Systems and Policy, Health Services Academy, Islamabad, Pakistan.
authors.forename: Babar Tasneem
authors.initials: BT
authors.lastname: Shaikh
authors.affiliation: RatanaSomrongthong, PhD Associate Professor, College of Public Health Sciences, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.
authors.forename: Ratana
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Somrongthong
authors.affiliation: Robert S Chapman, MD Faculty, College of Public Health Sciences, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.
authors.forename: Robert S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: Chapman
keywords: Healthcare personnel; Infectious waste management; Pakistan; Tertiary care hospitals