HOSPITAL ENVIRONMENTAL AND RESIDUES MANAGEMENT: BRAZILIAN EXPERIENCES

What is it about?

Since Brazilian healthcare institutions have the duty to care about public health service, they also have the social and financial responsibilities to bring environmentally friendly practices and strategies, including principally a responsible attitude towards hospital waste management. Negligent waste management contributes significantly to polluting the environment. Today, a specific regional context in the southern State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, shows an ambivalent situation in terms of hospital waste management. This study aims to analyze the environmental management practices and innovation strategies of the hospitals of the Serra Gaúcha region, as well as conducting a comparison between the environmental management practices versus the current Brazilian laws. Based on data analysis, it was found that all hospitals employ the practice of waste segregation, preserving public health and environmental quality. However, in respect to hospital waste effluents, 75% of the hospitals of the Serra Gaúcha region do not treat their hospital effluents, not complying with the current Brazilian legislation.

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