Assessment of the Pharmaceutical Waste Management System in Jordan: Regulations and System Characteristics
Publication: Journal of Hazardous, Toxic, and Radioactive Waste
Volume 27, Issue 3
Abstract
Over the years, the level of healthcare services has evolved worldwide. Simultaneously, more pharmaceutical ingredients are being detected in water bodies. Pharmaceutical compounds have been detected in water resources in Jordan at levels similar to European and US waters. Although environmental protection regulatory frameworks have generally reached an influential level, pharmaceutical waste management is still facing several challenges, rendering its regulatory framework weak. This study evaluates the current regulatory framework and its application in guiding pharmaceutical waste management in Jordan. The regulatory framework evaluation study consisted of reviewing the regulations according to the level of coverage, integration, overlap, and presence of conflicts. The compliance with the regulatory framework was evaluated using a semistructured interview with pharmaceutical waste generators and conducting a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) analysis. The study showed that the regulatory system does not contain specific regulations for pharmaceutical waste management. Nevertheless, the regulations consider industrial and medical pharmaceutical waste types of hazardous waste. The study shows that pharmaceutical wastes are regulated by two main authorities: The Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Health. These authorities supervise pharmaceutical waste at manufacturing and health service facilities. The study revealed that the regulations of these authorities overlap and lack multirule integration. Site visits and interviews revealed that the lack of documentation and record keeping are the main challenges facing pharmaceutical waste tracking at the source. Site visits showed that the current disposal methods do not eradicate pharmaceutical waste threats to the environment properly. The current pharmaceutical waste management practices do not provide a reliable and infallible system. The study indicated a dire need for devising a waste management auditing system, applying complete waste destruction methods, a compliance incentive system, and introducing a reliable municipal pharmaceutical waste recovery system when applicable.
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Published In
Journal of Hazardous, Toxic, and Radioactive Waste
Volume 27 • Issue 3 • July 2023
Copyright
© 2023 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Nov 14, 2022
Accepted: Mar 10, 2023
Published online: Apr 28, 2023
Published in print: Jul 1, 2023
Discussion open until: Sep 28, 2023
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