Unmasking emerging issues in solid waste management: Knowledge and self-reported practices on the discarded disposable masks during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines

Limon, Mark Raguindin; Vallente, John Paul C.; Cajigal, Aris Reynol V.; Aquino, Marlowe U.; Aragon, Jovenita; Acosta, Rosabel L.

doi:10.1016/j.envc.2021.100435

Cited by 11 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 55 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…However, when it comes to actual practices, some showed unsatisfactory results. These outcomes were also seen in the other study by Limon et al [ 47 ], which is within the Philippine context.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 84%

Face mask and medical waste generation in the City of Baguio, Philippines: its current management and GHG footprint

Lunag

Abana

Agcaoili

et al. 2023

J Mater Cycles Waste Manag

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The daily use of facemask to prevent virus transmission increases the negative effect on the environment because of improper waste disposal. Due to the absence of baseline data, the impact of facemask and medical waste generation, as well as the community’s management practice, should be studied to avoid further environmental degradation. In this study, we surveyed 384 respondents and conducted computational analysis to provide an overview of the household’s facemask usage and ecological footprint in combating Covid-19. Results showed that most respondents (48.7%) use two facemasks per day. Thus, an estimated 417,834 facemasks are disposed daily, generating 3,585 kg/day of additional waste. The average medical waste of Covid-infected individuals is 3.29 kg per day per capita. This yields 22,438 kg. of CO 2 eq., which could contribute to the global warming potential; however, there is also a potential recovery of 61.572 gigajoules of energy for power generation. Most respondents are aware of proper facemask waste management practices, but some lacks application regarding responsible waste disposal. Despite the contribution of facemask to the overall solid waste generation, the city’s current management remains a challenge since disposable facemasks are potentially mixed with other types of waste from its storage, collection, and disposal. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10163-023-01601-2.

show abstract

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 84%

Face mask and medical waste generation in the City of Baguio, Philippines: its current management and GHG footprint

Lunag

Abana

Agcaoili

et al. 2023

J Mater Cycles Waste Manag

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Our study’s findings revealed a weakly positive correlation between knowledge of facemask disposal and the variables sex and academic program. In the Philippines, a correlation was also found between sex and knowledge of single-use facemask disposable among students [ 25 ]. The researchers determined that the male students in their study had a higher level of understanding than their female counterparts, and the participants with high levels of knowledge were identified as young males with a high level of educational attainment.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We found no significant difference in knowledge levels across the academic year, which indicated that students at different levels received the information equally. In contrast, a study in the Philippines reported that education level significantly influenced knowledge of single-use facemask disposal [ 25 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Knowledge and practice of facemask disposal among university students in Thailand: A new normal post the COVID-19 pandemic

et al. 2023

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The use of facemasks is essential to prevent the transmission of COVID-19. University students are a significant demographic that generates substantial infectious waste due to the new normal practice of using disposable facemasks. In this cross-sectional study, we investigated the facemask disposal knowledge and practices among university students in Thailand between September and October 2022. We used a self-report questionnaire comprising 29 questions to determine the students’ demographic characteristics and facemask disposal knowledge and practices. We then applied a logistic regression model to estimate the association between the students’ facemask disposal knowledge and practices and their demographic characteristics. A total of 433 participants completed the questionnaire comprising health science (45.27%) and non-health science (54.73%) students. Surgical masks were the most popular masks (89.84%), followed by N95 (26.33%) and cloth masks (9.94%). While their levels of knowledge regarding facemask disposal were poor, the students’ practices were good. The factors associated with proper facemask disposal were sex (AOR = 0.469, 95% CI: 0.267, 0.825), academic grade (AOR = 0.427, 95% CI: 0.193, 0.948), and knowledge level (AOR = 0.594, 95% CI: 0.399, 0.886). No demographic factors influenced knowledge. Our findings highlight the influence of facemask disposal knowledge on students’ disposal practices. Information promoting the appropriate disposal practices should therefore be promoted extensively. Furthermore, continuous reinforcement by raising awareness and educating students on proper facemask disposal combined with the provision of adequate infectious waste disposal facilities could help reduce the environmental contamination of infectious waste and thus improve general waste management.

show abstract

“…Out of a total of 501 health facilities initially identified for the study, 486 were included in the final analysis of the study, thus representing a 97% response rate. Fifteen (15) of the sampled facilities were not included in the final analysis due to non-responses from the facilities and incomplete information. The inclusion of such data would have skewed the data analysis/output.…”

Section: Descriptive Characteristics Of Health Facilities In the Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some studies have focused on COVID-19 and medical waste management. [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18] While most of these researches were conducted in advanced economies, limited studies have assessed medical waste management during COVID-19 pandemic in Sub-Sahara Africa. [19][20][21] In Ghana, limited studies have reported COVID-19 and healthcare waste management, especially in the two regions which are the epicentres of the pandemic in Ghana.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Health care waste management in health facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ghana

Amfo-Otu¹,

Akyeampong

Affordofe

et al. 2022

Int J Community Med Public Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Healthcare waste management (HCWM) system in healthcare facilities is essential in dealing with the spread of infectious diseases, especially during an outbreak period such as the COVID-19 pandemic. The study assessed health care waste management situation in selected healthcare facilities in the greater Accra and Ashanti regions of Ghana during the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods: This was a multi-facility-based cross-sectional study that used a monitoring tool of the health facilities regulatory agency of Ghana to collect information on health care waste management practices at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Data was gathered from 501 healthcare facilities in the greater Accra (335) and Ashanti (151) regions. Descriptive, Chi-square and multiple logistic regression were performed. All statistical analyses were considered significant at an alpha level of 0.05.Results: Less than half (45.7%) of the health facilities were assessed as having HCWM systems with majority (54.3%) having effective infectious waste management system. The health facilities in the greater Accra region (38.8%) and Ashanti region (60.9%) were categorized as poor on healthcare waste management system. The assessment levels of governance/leadership, management, quality assurance system, human resource, infection prevention and control equipment and water management were all significantly associated with the adherence to good HCWM systems.Conclusions: Health facilities were assessed as having good healthcare waste management systems, especially in the greater Accra region compared to the Ashanti, however treatment and safe disposal should be improved.

show abstract

Unmasking emerging issues in solid waste management: Knowledge and self-reported practices on the discarded disposable masks during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines

Cited by 11 publications

References 55 publications

Face mask and medical waste generation in the City of Baguio, Philippines: its current management and GHG footprint

Face mask and medical waste generation in the City of Baguio, Philippines: its current management and GHG footprint

Knowledge and practice of facemask disposal among university students in Thailand: A new normal post the COVID-19 pandemic

Health care waste management in health facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ghana

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About