A Gap Analysis in Selected Asian Countries, 3R Knowledge Hub ...

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3R Gap Analysis and Findings
provinces adopted sanitary landfill, and 11
provinces depended on dumping and/or a local
incinerator. Phengxay et al ( 2005) indicated
that only the provincial hospital in Vientiane
Municipality had a healthcare waste manual
produced by a Japanese volunteer.
The same study indicates that in Vientiane
Municipality, the average amounts of
healthcare waste was 0.84 kg/bed per day at the
national hospital; 1.08 kg/bed per day at the
provincial hospital; 0.47 kg/bed per day at the
district hospital; and 0.08 kg/bed per day at the
health centre.
In Bolikhamxay: 0.56 kg/bed per day at the
provincial hospital; 0.33 kg/bed per day at the
district hospital; 0.24 kg/bed per day at the
health centre. The proportion of healthcare
waste with total average in two study sites by
kg/bed per day was 23% (17% at the inpatient
department, 58% at the outpatient department).
Due to the wide-ranging bed occupancy rate, it
was found that the inpatient departments
generated a much greater amount of healthcare
waste (kg/patient per day) than the outpatient
departments.
The healthcare waste in the inpatient
departments in Vientiane Municipality and
Bolikhamxay were 1.46 kg/ inpatient per day
and 0.57 kg/inpatient per day, respectively. The
proportion of healthcare waste for an inpatient
was higher at the primary health-care level
(health centre): 42% at a health centre
compared with 17% at the national hospital in
Vientiane Municipality. In Bolikhamxay, it was
45% at a health centre and 19% at the provincial
hospital.
Findings
A study conducted at two places in Laos,
Vientiane Municipality and Bolihamxay
province, focusing on the amount of healthcare
waste, its segregation and the influencing
factors, particularly segregation procedures
revealed that healthcare waste was poorly
segregated.
Higher proportions of healthcare waste were
observed from the inpatient department at the
primary healthcare level. Healthcare waste
management at primary healthcare facilities
needs more attention. Segregation of sharp
waste has to be enforced at all healthcare
facilities. For infectious waste segregation and
usage of color-coded bags is practiced only at
the national hospital and in some provincial
hospitals.
As for the disposal of healthcare waste is
concerned, the municipality of Vientiane and
four provinces adopted sanitary landfill, and 11
provinces depend on open dumping and (or) a
local incinerator.
There is a need to establish a national policy on
healthcare waste management in Lao to
prevent hazardous healthcare waste causing
pollution and harm to human health. In
particular, the current levels of healthcare
waste management at primary healthcare
facilities needs to be given much more attention
and be better understood. Furthermore,
additional details of the final disposal situation
should be investigated and provision of
collection services to the appropriate dumping
sites, incinerators, or disinfecting methods are
needed to protect the health of the population
and the environment.
E-WASTE
Most of e-wastes in Laos come from household
appliances, office, information and
communication equipment, entertainment and
consumer electronics, lighting equipment,
electric and electronic tools.
Currently, no data is available on the amount or
volume of e-waste in the country but the
current situation of e-waste in Laos is
increasing daily and definitely would be a
problem in the near future for most of Laos’s
residents.
Findings
In Lao PDR, there is no specific legislation or
regulation for the control on the import of
second hand electrical and other electronic
equipments. Most of the regulations on imports
do not include the risk of e-waste entering the
country as second hand equipment. Further
issues arising from e-waste have not been
addressed in the Environmental Protection Law
of the government of Laos.