Modern biomedical waste incinerator installed for Noguchi

A modern biomedical waste incinerator with the capacity to efficiently treat 250 kilogrammes of biomedical waste per hour and 3,200 kilogrammes of biomedical waste per day has been commissioned at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR).

The incinerator, purchased at $139,203 from the Embassy of Japan in Ghana through its Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGHSP) Scheme, is described as the first in the country with that high capacity to aid in biomedical waste disposal.

It has also been described as having the capacity to incinerate all kinds of biomedical waste, including bottle, paper and metallic. At a function at the institute’s premises to commission the incinerator, the Director of the NMIMR, Professor Dorothy Yeboah-Manu, said the institute worked with highly pathogenic bacteria, viruses, parasites, biological samples and chemicals that could become harmful and hazardous to staff and the community at large if they were not properly disposed off.

Incinerator

She said previously, the institute was using a locally manufactured incinerator which used to break down often, so at a point they had to use a commercial source to get rid of their waste which was also not optimal because they generated a lot of harmful chemical waste that must be disposed off very well.

The new Incinerator

She said that heightened in 2020 at the peak of the COVID-19 when they were analysing more than 3,000 samples a day. They, therefore, approached the Japan Embassy in Ghana for help which decided to give them the grant to help them purchase the incinerator, she said.

“This once again shows that NMIMR always use state of the art in everything that we do. Even our waste disposal, we are using the best practices as ever. It’s good for the staff because if your staff biosafety is not optimum, biosecurity is not optimum and your staff gets sick, it will affect your work,” she pointed out.

Professor Yeboah-Manu said with this modern incinerator, the institute could handle the waste of other biomedical institutions including CSIR and hospitals that have laboratories that handled contagious products.

The Japanese Ambassador to Ghana, Mochizuki Hisanobu, said as a medical research institution, one of the most important aspect of their work was the effective and safe disposal or management of biomedical waste being generated as a result of their work.

He said the embassy was, therefore, pleased to partner NMIMR to provide them with the modern incinerator for safe management of its biomedical waste.

Relationship

Recounting the long standing relationship between the institute and Japan, Mr Hisanobu said since the inception of the institute, there had been numerous collaborations between them to ensure that the institute provided optimum services to Ghanaians and people in the sub-region, adding that the incinerator was a reaffirmation of their commitment to continue with the partnership to the best of their capacity.

He entreated management and staff of the institute to optimise and maintain the facility in order to sustain it beyond its lifespan. On how the incinerator works, a former Facility Manager of NMIMR, Jacob Arthur-Quarm, said the incinerator was able to turn waste into ashes and with time, the ashes would be diluted and then go into the substructure and earth where it would be absorbed.

The Provost of Health Sciences at the NMIMR, Professor Julius Najiah Fobil, describing Japan as a true friend said, its friendship with the institute over the years was an example of unfailing support that they could always count on.