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Date: February 18, 2023

To: Ms. Rima Iskandarani

From: Dana Hafi, Sarah Saayfan, Hytham Alsafadi, Ahmad Serhal, Serena Boudakian

Subject: Proposal for a feasibility study on the best solution for minimizing waste from

disposing of medical syringes and blood bags, an issue that is still pending in medical institutions

in Lebanon.

Background to the problem:

Medical waste represents the leftovers resulting mainly from healthcare whether it was coming

from hospitals, pharmacies, and homes. Usually, medical waste is dangerous and contains high

contamination which is why this problem that deserves attention as it should be treated carefully

and delicately. WHO (World Health Organization) stated in its recent studies:” unsafe disposal

of medical waste caused 0.4-1 million deaths around the world as it is responsible for the

transition of infectious diseases” (Singh et. al., 2021, p. 2001). Medical waste is also considered

dangerous since 20% of this waste is hazardous with high contamination and it poses a high risk

to humans and the environment (Deepak, Sharma, and Kumar, 2022). During the covid-19

crisis, the world passed through one of its hardest times in decades when hospitals tried their best

to contain the pandemic, receive more patients than they could handle, and provide medical

equipment for people. With that being said, the use of all types of medical equipment like

pathological specimens, masks, gloves, and needles increased consequently which raised many

concerns on how this medical waste should be managed. Taking Wuhan city in China as an

example, the medical waste shifted dramatically from 40 tons/day to 240 tons/day (Hontoko et.
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al., 2021). In Lebanon, the case is no different but considering the economic crisis of this country

and the lack of the government’s support, many hospitals are struggling to manage their medical

waste. Consequently, this medical waste, mostly hazardous, will be dumped in the sea, rivers,

and on the roads which will have a harmful impact on the environment and on the people of this

country. To tackle this problem, experts in this field have taken different approaches like

incineration and burial pits, but, unfortunately, these methods may have high risks with

complications that can harm the environment. It also cannot be used for all types of medical

waste since some waste like needles, for instance, since it should be professionally sanitized due

to the fact that it might be contaminated with dangerous viruses and can contribute to spreading

mortal diseases like HIV and hepatitis (Singh et. al., 2021). Hence, additional research is

required to determine better solutions regarding medical waste management. Furthermore,

Lebanon can solve this problem by using an autoclave. Autoclave is a machine that kills harmful

bacteria, viruses, fungi, and spores using steam pressure. This conventional solution needs

constant maintenance and checkups on the machine to ensure that the equipment is properly

sterilized. However, we aim to design another solution, which is to use glass needles. Glass

needles can be used more than once and minimize the risk of infections, yet the concern of who

will ensure that the needle is properly sterilized is present. Thus, these solutions require further

research to implement the best solution for medical waste management in a thoughtful way that

benefits the Lebanese community as a whole.

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Problem Statement:

Lebanon and many other countries suffer from improper disposal of large amounts of wastes in

hospitals. This is caused by the increased population and need for healthcare services (Deepak,

Sharma, & Kumar, 2022). One of the biggest contributors to waste production, is single use

sharps (Deepak, Sharma, & Kumar, 2022). The sharps, if not disposed correctly, can be a serious

risk to environment and the community. Medical institutions normally use plastic needles, which

can be either cleaned via an autoclave, or thrown out. However, we aim to design another

solution, which is the use of glass needles.

The conventional solution is to use an autoclave for cleaning the needles. And the non-

conventional is to design glass reusable needles to replace plastic needles. To study the best

solution for the issue of disposing of sharps, we will evaluate it using the following criteria:

1- Cost:

We will first discuss the cost of designing each product. The solution should be cheap

enough to be mass produced across the country. easy enough to be produced across

Lebanon, and not difficult to be used by medical institutions.

2- Ease of manufacturing:

Manufacturing the product should simple enough to be produced and replicated across

Lebanon so that it can be produced in the mass quantity needed for all hospitals to easily

have the product.

3- Affordability:

The cost of the solution should be inexpensive and affordable. Medical institutions in

Lebanon, like any other institution, suffers from the economic collapse. Therefore, its
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foremost struggle is trying to stay afloat during these troubling times, and still provide

adequate services.

4- Safety:

We will discuss the ability of each solution to provide the best quality services. It must

live up to the right protocols and standards, so that it is suitable to be used in medical

institutions.

5- Durability:

The solutions will be compared based on their ability to withstand time, how and when

they gradually lose efficiency. We will also look at how often, if ever, do they need

maintenance.

6- Sustainability:

The solutions will be evaluated based on their environmental impact. Having less

environmental impact, would create safer communities and medical institutions.

During our study, we aim to answer the following questions:

 Will medical institutions be able to afford our products?

 Will the product be safe to use, and create less risk of infection?

 Does the solution have a long lifespan, which would replace the need of throwing away

single use plastic?

 Will medical institutions see the potential of the product and change their procedure of

disposing of their waste?

 Will the local industry be able to supply the large quantities needed for the solution?

 Will using an autoclave be a cheaper solution?

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Method:

In order to solve this problem, we are considering modernizing an old technique which is the use

of glass. For reducing the waste of plastic, we will replace the plastic part by the glass for the

needles and blood bags. To answer our previously mentioned questions, we will collect data by

reading recent articles that discuss the use of glass needles and blood bags in some country as

“Russia”. Also, we will focus on how many times we should use the glass for medical safety

since there is a limit for the usage of the same glass in hospital. Besides, we will widen the scope

to know how we can evacuate then recycle the glass after using it, note that all our scholarly

articles will be through AUB library. However, for our primary source, we will conduct

interviews with doctors and experts that can help us with some medical information about blood

and medicine, and we will especially ask nurses since they are the main users for our solution

“needles and blood bag”.

Their comments on the problems that they face it while using needle and blood bag, can help us

to find the best design for it since we are aiming to create a new solution that facilitate their job

and prevent waste of plastic.

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Schedule:

DATE: REQUIRED TASK:

February 18, 2023 Submission of proposal: First draft

TBA Submission of proposal: Final draft

February 25, 2023 Dividing our research into 4 parts on us:

1- The strategy of using Medieval Glass
needle and blood bag
2- The advantage and disadvantage of
glass
3- the disadvantage of plastic
4- the recyclable glass and how much
should we use it since it not
disposable material
March 14, 2023 Conducting interview with experts

TBA Submission of research outline and progress

reports
TBA Writing the first draft of feasibility report

TBA Finish Feasibility/ Recommendation Report:

First draft
TBA Check in and gather information to improve
for the final draft of the report
TBA Updating the first draft

April 25, 2023 IBDAA: submission poster

April 27, 2023 IBDAA presentation
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Conceivable problems:

Convincing institutions of using a product which is mainly made of glass, a material of which

the use in syringes was discarded more than 50 years ago (Kueter, 2019), is not an easy task

to do. It will be challenging for us to find a solution around the glass syringes since doctors

and nurses today may not know enough about it. There are a few articles on the recent use of

glass syringes in foreign countries, however they are limited. We will eventually find ways to

make use of the information we will be able to get to better explain our solution to reuse

syringes.

There may be a complex mechanism in the manufactured syringe of which the technicalities

might not be easy for all readers to understand through a text. For this reason, 3D modeling

will be a tool we will be using to further interpret the details of the syringe and its

functionality.

Professional interest:

Our group is composed of three architecture and two engineering students. As architects, we

always have a goal of designing for a function, let our project be useful at its best is what we

aim for. And as engineers, solving issues and creating a solution for a struggling domain or

group in society is also a priority. Besides, social responsibility is a matter that none of us

wants to disregard. Bringing to use a new medical product that is recyclable, cost friendly

and safely manageable is a major support first, to medical institutions, second, to

communities who bear the insanity of the disposed waste, and third to future generations by

reducing the impact of solid waste on the environment.

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Request for approval:

Lebanon is experiencing an economic crisis that is hindering its ability to maintain health and

social care standards for its citizens. Moreover, as a group of researchers, we have decided to

tackle the issue of medical waste management. This project is especially important because of

the risks from human infections and the emergence of epidemics. Furthermore, this issue affects

not only the people living around the hospital but also affects the environment and our

community, yet it is overlooked by the Lebanese government. Hence, we are writing this

proposal as a request to seek your approval upon undergoing this research report. Kindly let us

know the next steps for moving forward. Looking forward to working into solving one of

Lebanon’s hazardous issues together.

References:
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Deepak, A., Sharma, V., & Kumar, D. (2022). Life cycle assessment of biomedical waste

management for reduced environmental impacts. Journal of Cleaner Production, 131376.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.131376

Hantoko, D., Li, X., Pariatamby, A., Yoshikawa, K., Horttanainen, M., & Yan, M. (2021).

Challenges and practices on waste management and disposal during COVID-19

pandemic. Journal of Environmental Management, 286, 112140.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112140
Kueter, C. P. (2019, July 5). Flashback Friday - Syringe evolution. UVA School of Nursing.

https://www.nursing.virginia.edu/news/flashback-syringe-evolution

‌Singh, N., Ogunseitan, O. A., & Tang, Y. (2021). Medical waste: Current challenges and future
opportunities for sustainable management. Critical Reviews in Environmental Science

and Technology, 1–23.

Working Bibliography:

Żebrowski, P., Zawierucha, J., Prystacki, T., Marcinkowski, W., & Małyszko, J. (2020). Medical

waste management – how industry can help us to protect environment and money? Renal
Failure, 42(1), 547–549. https://doi.org/10.1080/0886022x.2020.1774900

‌Maalouf, A., & Maalouf, H. (2021). Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on medical waste

management in Lebanon. Waste Management & Research: The Journal for a Sustainable

Circular Economy, 39(1), 0734242X2110039.

https://doi.org/10.1177/0734242x211003970

‌UNEP on TikTok. (n.d.). TikTok. Retrieved February 18, 2023, from

https://www.tiktok.com/@unep/video/7170616020451839237?_r=1&_t=8Zf9DcVOGdV

‌1 1 P a g e WASTE MANAGEMENT STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. (2021).

https://www.emphnet.net/media/ikhlmcax/waste-management-sops-english.pdf
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‌Abed Al Ahad, M., Chalak, A., Fares, S., Mardigian, P., & Habib, R. R. (2020).

Decentralization of solid waste management services in rural Lebanon: Barriers and

opportunities. Waste Management & Research, 0734242X2090511.

https://doi.org/10.1177/0734242x20905115

‌AUB, USJ launch joint research unit to address - ProQuest. (n.d.). Www.proquest.com.

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launch-joint-research-unit-address-solid/docview/2416944458/se-2?accountid=8555

‌Hooshmand, S., Kargozar, S., Ghorbani, A., Darroudi, M., Keshavarz, M., Baino, F., & Kim,

H.-W. (2020). Biomedical Waste Management by Using Nanophotocatalysts: The Need

for New Options. Materials, 13(16), 3511. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma13163511

‌Chisholm, J. M., Zamani, R., Negm, A. M., Said, N., Abdel daiem, M. M., Dibaj, M., &

Akrami, M. (2021). Sustainable waste management of medical waste in African

developing countries: A narrative review. Waste Management & Research: The Journal

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‌
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