Re-usable syringes

"UNAIDS estimates that as much as 2.5% of HIV/AIDS cases in sub-Saharan Africa may be caused by unsafe injections. In the year 2000 alone, WHO estimates that 256,000 new HIV/AIDS infections, 2 million new Hepatitis C infections, and 21 million new Hepatitis B infections resulted from improper reuse of injection devices."

It appears that healthcare workers are not able to properly sterilize needles to prevent the spread of HIV. That's why disposable needles are used.

Friday, January 16, 2009

First of all nothing I say about this is going to really matter.

You say 2.5% of aids is spread through misuse of needles. I can do nothing but agree.

You say the solution is to have disposable needles. I say these same healthcare workers need to learn to do their job. Because if they can’t do that, what else are they doing wrong?

It’s about the western MINDSET of waste that is the problem.

Getting rid of disposable syringes is just one part of the failure to effectively getting rid of Medical waste.

As follows is an excerpt from this link from the World health Organization.

www.afro.who.int/ddc/vpd/tfi2003/presentations/composite_waste_report.pdf

(I will make comments in parentheses.)
Why are syringes re-used in the developing world? (Talking about REUSING disposable syringes.)

Widespread re-use of syringes and needles in the developing world is due to several factors:

· a lack of awareness regarding the risks associated with syringe re-use. (this is a lack of training.)

· cultural resistance to waste in countries where resources are scarce;
(this is a good thing. We shouldn’t be teaching other cultures our bad habits.)

· a lack of supplies of syringes and needles;
(I don’t know, do they run out of syringes because they keep throwing them away?)

· the absence of infrastructure for the safe collection and destruction of used injection equipment, allowing for
scavenging and parallel market development.

(Think of this for a moment, because we don’t sterilize and reuse syringes, others scavenge them and they become used in un-thought of ways.)

As far as this statement, “It appears that healthcare workers are not able to properly sterilize needles to prevent the spread of HIV. That's why disposable needles are used.”


I apologize if I see things differently. It’s not an issue of whether health care workers are “unable” to sterilize needles.***

If they can’t sterilize needles, what can they do? From the above report they can’t dispose of syringes effectively either. They can’t dispose of Medical waste effectively.


You say the solution is to have disposable needles. I say these same healthcare workers need to learn to do their job.

*** I recognize that there are some circumstances where disposable needles need to be used but not as a common practice.

How to Sterilize syringes.

Put the needles in a pressure cooker and do it for the subscribed length of time. Take them out and put them in a canning jar that has been sterilized in the same way.

Hamilton re-usable syringe company says that is an acceptable way. (Autoclaving).
Also the Indian Journal of Pediatrics http://www.springerli...
I can find a hundred quotes its just true.

The Cost of disposable versus reusable syringes.

The Cost of disposable syringes.

Looking for the cost of disposable syringes, they were 14-24 cents a syringe when bought in packages of 1000. So for the purpose of this discussion I will say the cost of disposable syringes are 10 cents a piece.

Plus the cost of transportation to resupply. (over and over again.)
Plus the cost of the special box to store the used syringes.
Plus the cost of burning them. But if they are burned in a low temperature home made incinerator it can produce PCBs in the atmosphere. Sometimes they just burn them in an open pit, even worse. Sometimes they just bury them. The next rain and what happens?
Plus the cost of sticking themselves increases the more they handle them.
Plus the cost of people scavenging used, unsterilized syringes.

TOTAL COST 10 cents each plus all of the above.

2000 uses, 2000 disposable syringes. $200 plus the above cost.

The Cost of disposable versus reusable syringes.

Looking for the cost of reusable syringes, they were $1.15-$3.05 a syringe when bought in packages of 1000. So for the purpose of this discussion I will say the cost of reusable syringes are $1.00 a piece.

Plus the cost of a pressure cooker and the energy to heat it. A reusable syringe may need the point re-sharpened after a year, 2000 uses.
TOTAL COST $1 plus all of the above.

2000 uses 1 re-usable syringe. $1 plus the above cost.


This is all about the mindset of waste.

And obviously these are made up numbers but you should get the point.

In the big picture that $199 dollar difference is what we should be looking at.

Every dollar you save can be reinvested. Every dollar you waste is lost forever.