New Incinerator Reduces Threat of Diseases

While an incinerator doesn’t seem like an exciting development project, for the community around Kasungu District Hospital it meant the difference between sickness and health.  For year, Kasungu District Hospital was using a make-shift incinerator to dispose of used needles, syringes, glass, gloves, and bandages.  However, the incinerator did not function properly and therefore caused damage to the environment and also a great threat adults and children living, working and playing around the hospital.  By not properly disposing of the medical equipment, community members were at greater risk for disease.  With immune systems already compromised from malnutrition, this was a potentially dangerous situation.  With funding from USAID, Management Sciences for Health (MSH) helped Kasungu District Hospital staff construct the incinerator and trained staff on how to effectively dispose of medical equipment.  The harmful medical waste is now adequately incinerated thereby reducing the risks of partially burnt materials such as needles and other hazardous waste lying around to children playing in the area.  The new incinerator reduces the risk of infection while also protecting the environment.