Vikki Thank you for your response. CAP is exactly why I am asking this question. WE do presently have procedures for the exceptions you mentioned. However, it came up in conversation that shavings may be considered "infectious waste". I have yet to find anything in the CAP information that mention this material. I did note your mention of block disposal, and we have that under control per CAP requirements. It's the grey area of shaving we are questioning.
Gary From: Victoria Baker [mailto:bakevicto...@gmail.com] Sent: Tuesday, February 01, 2011 9:35 AM To: Martin, Gary Cc: histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu Subject: Re: [Histonet] Infectious waste Hi You may receive many opinions on this --- just a heads up. Many clinical labs do not consider shavings or debris from cutting to be red bag (hazardous) waste as they are no longer a 'biological hazard' due to the processing process which incorporates heat, alcohol and a fixative that is expected to effectively kill any infectious agents. There are some exceptions, which you can find in the CDC or OSHA guidelines such as dealing with tissue of brain (Jakob-creutzfeldt) lung (TB or other air-borne pathogens). CAP also has requirements/guidelines for handling these cases which you will need to have documentation for the processing procedure. I would suggest that you refer to these guidelines and also to your institutions regulations on what is regarded as hazardous waste. Above and beyond anything else make sure you document and site in your procedures manual your sources. Hope this will help you. Vikki PS - any spelling errors I apologize for in advance ;-) On Tue, Feb 1, 2011 at 11:45 AM, Martin, Gary <gmar...@marshallmedical.org> wrote We are wondering if paraffin block shavings are considered infectious waste. _______________________________________________ Histonet mailing list Histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet _______________________________________________ Histonet mailing list Histonet@lists.utsouthwestern.edu http://lists.utsouthwestern.edu/mailman/listinfo/histonet