How to use a medical needle disposal machine: destroy your sharps waste onsite!

22-01-2024

Medical needles - also known as “sharps” – represent a huge proportion of waste generated by medical facilities each year. These needles can be highly hazardous, and their disposal must be taken very seriously because of high infection risks (and hefty fines if regulations are not met).

In Celitron’s next article, you will learn more about how to make your working environment more secure for your staff and patients, as well as facilitate the medical needle disposal process with your own onsite sharps disposal machine!

Why is medical needle disposal so important? What kind of machine can help?

One of the reasons why medical needles are categorized as such highly hazardous waste is that – due to the nature of treatments – they easily make contact with blood. Such bodily fluids can easily transmit dangerous infections from one patient to another, or even medical staff if the necessary precautions are not taken.

Even after treatment, the sharp tip at the end of medical needles (hence the term sharps) can easily puncture human skin, even through traditional garbage bags or gowns. One single prick is often enough for the damage to be done and for an infection to spread.

Even with more modern sterilization technologies at hand, sharps cannot be reused, which is why in this particular case, autoclaves won’t be enough for safe waste disposal. You will either need an incinerator or a needle destroyer machine.

• Incinerators completely destroy the waste via HTI (High-Temperature Incineration),but due to their higher capital and operational costs, they are mostly used as an offsite service by most medical facilities. They also come with a higher risk of air pollution and need much more space to be installed compared to autoclaves and onsite sharps disposal machines.
• Needle destroyer machines use powerful blades to render sharps into an unrecognizable state, and use the same steam sterilization technology found in the most advanced autoclaves to ensure the destruction of harmful, heat-resistant pathogens.

Medical needle disposal steps – Via onsite machines or offsite destruction

Before the disposal of medical needles can occur with the help of an onsite machine or an offsite waste disposal service, certain steps must be taken to ensure the safety of patients and staff.

1. Collection and segregation. After being used for the treatment of patients, sharps need to be segregated from other types of waste and collected in appropriately marked and color-coded sharps containers. These containers are usually red or yellow and marked with the universal biohazard symbol.
2. Storage. The medical needle containers will need to be placed in a separate area of the medical facility, far from any populated area. Staff should wear Personal Protective Equipment at all times and take extra care not to puncture their skin when handling medical needles.
   IMPORTANT NOTE FROM THE CELITRON TEAM: Once containers are at about ¾ of their capacity, they are considered full! Never overfill containers, and never push down sharps to make more room, as this can easily lead to cuts and punctures which spread infections!
3. Disposal. The final step traditionally occurs offsite, but that comes with more risks compared to using an onsite medical needle disposal machine. The reason is that in the case of offsite treatments, the waste will remain infectious at the site of your facility since it won’t be sterile. Thus it will require extra caution until is taken off your hands.

Sharps disposal with Celitron’s medical needle destroyer machine: what are the advantages of this technology?

Celitron’s needle destroyer machine combines the best of both worlds when it comes to the safe disposal of medical sharps. It combines the features of a modern, pre-vacuum autoclave with that of a powerful waste shredder. This is why it is known as the ISS (Integrated Sterilizer and Shredder).

With high-pressure and high-temperature (134 degrees Celsius) steam, even heat-resistant foreign materials are destroyed, making it just as effective as incineration to make sure medical needle disposal can occur safely. By shredding the waste, it allows for even better steam penetration, resulting in an extremely reliable steam sterilization process.

Sharps disposal machines for both small clinics and large hospitals

Celitron’s sharps disposal machine can treat up to 150 kg worth of waste every single hour, making it an exceptional choice for larger medical facilities that generate a large amount of waste each day. We also offer options for smaller clinics that don’t have as much available space. Regardless of size, you will be able to find the model that best suits your needs and allow you to continue to work profitably.

We offer models with a 25, 150, and 560-liter capacity chamber.

Onsite medical needle disposal machine

Our onsite medical needle disposal machine renders all sharps into an unrecognizable, sterile, dry pile of waste, free from liquid components. It will also be greatly reduced in volume to about 20% of the original size of the load inside the machine.

This not only allows you to eliminate the risks associated with storing and transporting medical needles but also reduces the amount of waste that needs to be prepped for disposal. This results in liberated storage space AND fewer transportation services, leading to reduced costs.

Apart from medical needles, Celtitron’s disposal machine can treat:

• Syringes
• Dialysis waste
• Lab cultures and specimens
• Discarded diagnostic samples containing blood and body fluids
• Plastics
• Textiles
• Glass
• Certain organic materials

Sustainable and cost-effective needle destroyer machine

Celitron’s needle destroyer machines come with advanced water and energy-saving systems and come with zero risk of foul odors or air pollution. It is a much less costly option compared to onsite incinerators.

Completely automated machine for medical needle disposal

Our medical needle disposal machine is fully automated, with a “one-touch operation” that makes it particularly user-friendly. All relevant information is displayed on a digital full-color touch-screen LCD screen, and the entire process can be launched with the push of a button. Even the closing and opening of the door is done automatically.

Celitron’s ISS (Integrated Sterilizer and Shredder) is a reliable, safe, and user-friendly onsite medical needle disposal machine.

Do you have any questions about the specifications and uses of the ISS? Are you looking for a free price quote to install it at your medical facility?

CONTACT US TODAY!