IIT Delhi research can help hospitals choose medical waste disposal firms

NEW DELHI: A group of researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi has develops a framework to help hospitals select a sustainable medical waste disposal firm. The research team led by Surya Prakash Singh, professor in the department of management studies, based the study on hospitals in a north Indian city.

According to a statement released by IIT Delhi, the study is significant, especially in the context of the prevailing Covid situation as the number of hazardous medical wastes, including syringes, masks, bandages, blooded cotton, and chemicals, is increasing.

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“The study provides a robust decision-making framework for the hospitals to select the right medical waste disposal firm,” said the statement.

The research paper was published in the Journal of Environmental Management. The study considers factors such as manpower, cases filed in court, cost, the reputation of existing clients, years active, technology, collection instruments, staff training and awareness, recycling, and risk.

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“The aim of this study is to propose a hybrid multi-criteria decision support framework integrated with a mathematical model to tackle the issue of safe disposal of hazardous and infectious healthcare waste. The study shows a direction to the hospital management in selecting economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable healthcare waste disposal firms,” said Singh. He further said that the framework will help hospitals to reduce the confrontations between stakeholders and environmental regulatory bodies.