Posted By Bill Morrison We have a number of Feminine Hygiene drivers who go into premises and remove soiled and contaminated waste. Does anyone out there have any advice/experience of a managing this? We provide PPE but should we also be providing Hepatitis B vaccinations and the like?

Posted By Bill Elliott Bill - Your COSHH assessment should address this issue, but if you take the HSC Health Services Advisory Committee view as described in Safe Disposal of Clinical Waste 2nd edition then immunisation for Hep B and Tetanus is likely to be required. There are other issues to be addressed like PPE - but -PPE should not be the only (or first) line of defence. Regards

Posted By John Webster Bill, You don't describe the activity. Do they just exchange rigid bins, do they remove and seal a plastic liner, or do the bins contain chemical fluid which is then emptied with the contents? Whichever, it is the risk of the operatives coming into contact with infectious contents which must be assessed, and the risk of contracting a BBV infection as a result of that contact (e.g. would the chemical fluid be sufficient to destroy harmful pathogens under all forseeable conditions of use). Depending what you are doing, and what other control measures are in place, attention to basic hygiene practices could be all that is required. I'm sure, however, you will be aware of the added risk posed by needles & other sharps dumped in the containers. It is primarily for this reason that we offer hepatitis innoculation to all of our clinical waste handlers