Country Project
Timor-Leste
HEALTHCARE WASTE MANAGEMENT PROJECT TO IMPROVE LONG-TERM MANAGEMENT OF HEALTHCARE WASTE IN TIMOR-LESTE
HEALTHCARE WASTE MANAGEMENT PROJECT TO IMPROVE LONG-TERM MANAGEMENT OF HEALTHCARE WASTE IN TIMOR-LESTE
The National Directorate for the Environment under the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Environment and the Ministry of Health seek to utilise PacWastePlus funds to implement several interconnected activities.
Project Description
Current Situation
The exposure to wastes generated in health care facilities has direct health impacts on the community, the personnel working in healthcare facilities, and the environment. Poorly handled medical wastes by health care professionals, and waste management personnel have led to an elevated chance of disease and sickness. Improper management of healthcare wastes (through open burning) on land adjacent to hospitals is leading to large areas of contaminated land, unusable for other purposes, and in need of remediation.
What is the Timor-Leste Project About?
The Timor-Leste country project seeks to:
• create a national policy for the management of healthcare wastes that support local hospital healthcare waste management planning
• enhance capacity building leading to proper planning for healthcare waste handling and disposal, support for waste transport infrastructure, and the provision of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), and
• undertake the clean-up of soils/debris from the improper disposal and land surface burning of medical waste in the fields adjacent to Baucau Hospital
Future Situation
Land and water pollution caused by contaminated burn fields at Baucau Hospital is no longer an issue due to the removal of waste from those burn fields. Inappropriately managed healthcare waste from Guido Valadares National Hospital (Dili); Baucau Referral Hospital (Baucau); Maliana Referral Hospital (Maliana); Suai Referral Hospital (Suai); and Maubisse Referral Hospital (Maubisse) is eliminated as hospital healthcare waste management plans are enacted.
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Project resources
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Technical Report
Timor-Leste Waste Audit Report
The information and data gathered from these waste audits will be used by countries in the Pacific to support the development and monitoring of waste and resource recovery projects and recommend the infrastructure and policy interventions required. The regional dataset will also be used to identify and evaluate potential regional projects that would improve waste management in the region.
Factsheet
Asbestos Management Brief: TIMOR-LESTE
The PacWastePlus Regional Asbestos Project will support countries in executing solutions, both legislative and policy-driven, to prevent exposure to asbestos fibre, and thereby reduce asbestos-related diseases. This document provides guidance for Timor-Leste to progress work on the development and implementation of a National ACM ban with this resource providing background information, identifying policy and legislative options available.
Factsheet
Timor Leste Project Profile – Health Care Waste Management: Improving long term management of healthcare waste
The exposure to wastes generated in health care facilities has direct health impacts on the community, the personnel working in healthcare facilities, and the environment. Poorly handled medical wastes by health care professionals, and waste management personnel have led to an elevated chance of disease and sickness. Improper management of healthcare wastes (through open burning) on land adjacent to hospitals leads to large areas of contaminated land, unusable for other purposes, and needing remediation. The National Directorate for the Environment under the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Environment and the Ministry of Health seeks to utilise PacWastePlus funds to implement several interconnected activities to improve long-term management of healthcare waste in Timor Leste.
Frequently Asked Questions
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- Develop a National Healthcare Waste Strategy for the period of 2021-2026
- Execute removal of contamination caused by historic open burning of healthcare waste at Baucau hospital.
- Create and execute regional hospitals healthcare waste plans to better handle, control and dispose of health care waste.
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PacWaste conducted a healthcare waste management baseline survey in April 2014; the survey identified the need for improved storage, treatment, and disposal solutions for healthcare waste across the country. There is a significant need to complement complete previous works and support the implementation of sustainable waste management in Timor-Leste’s healthcare industry.
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- National Healthcare Waste Strategy Existed and properly applied to the National, Regional, and Municipality Hospitals.
- Significant improvements in healthcare waste management, execution of policies, and awareness-raising of properly healthcare waste disposal practices.
- Totally free from contaminated infection diseases as part of proper disposal practices.