Orientation marks Infection Control Week in Dimapur

Dimapur, Dec. 5 (EMN): Orientation on hospital infection control and bio-waste management for the healthcare providers marked the Infection Control Week held at Urban Public Health Centre (UPHC) in Duncan Basti, Dimapur, on December 4. The programme was organised by the office of the chief medical officer (CMO), Dimapur, and Nagaland Health Project, Dimapur.

In her keynote address, CMO Dimapur Dr. Mereninla Senlem has stressed on the importance of sensitisation at all levels of the staff on infection control and bio-waste management from the medical officer to the janitorial staff in order to prevent infection and contamination of the health facility.

Also speaking on the occasion, the deputy CMO Dr. Antoly Suu informed that only 20% are hazardous out of the total waste generated in a health facility. She, therefore, advised to handle and dispose-off the waste appropriately to avoid contamination of the health facility.

The main steps of infection control and bio-waste management in a health facility, according to her, are segregation, collection, storage, transport, and disposal of the waste. She added that waste generated in the health unit must be segregated at source in an appropriate colour coded dustbins and disposed off separately.

She further informed that Nagaland Health Project has been instrumental in the infection control and bio-waste management in the district by constructing deep burial pits and sharp pits in all the government health units and also by providing autoclave machines used for sterilising surgical equipment at the PHC/ CHC level.

Report stated that the first session concluded with a demonstration by UPHC Duncan staff on how they manage the waste in their facility.

In the second session, facility level training orientation on NQAS (National Quality Assurance Standard) was conducted for the healthcare workers of UPHC Duncan. The training mainly focused on orienting the healthcare workers on the evaluation criteria and checklist to qualify for NQAS certification.

It stated that the same orientation programme was also conducted for the staff of Dimapur District Hospital.