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Panjshir PRT medics improve medical sanitation

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Ashton Goodman
  • Panjshir PRT Public Affairs office
BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan --  As soon as the Panjshir Provincial Reconstruction Team arrived in the Panjshir Valley in November 2008, they noticed a need for a more sanitary way of disposing of contaminated needles.

"We saw that they were using cardboard boxes and buckets for [sharps] disposal. We also observed needles laying all over the ground," said Air Force Tech. Sgt. James Bailey, a PRT medic from Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla.

To solve this problem, Sergeant Bailey and Air Force Tech. Sgt. Alfred Greene, a medic deployed from Shaw AFB, S.C., met with the Panjshir Director of Public Health (DoPH) to find some ways to safely dispose of needles.

After much brainstorming, they decided that using old ammunition cans was a fast and easy way that allowed medical facilities to transport used needles to a disposal area.

Ammunition cans are reusable and inexpensive. After they are spray-painted white with the word "SHARPS" stencilled in Dari, a clasp is placed on the lid to prevent spillage. A hole is then drilled in the top allowing needles to be safely dropped inside.

"So far, over the past few months, 20 clinics have benefited from our sharps containers, to include 17 DoPH clinics, two non-ER nongovernmental organization clinics, and five maternal child health clinics," explained Sergeant Bailey.

The clinics are provided with two cans each, one for clinic use while the other is being emptied at the disposal site.

Clinic personnel have readily accepted the program and were taught proper ways to clean the cans. Also, a placard is given to the health clinics to provide information regarding what goes into the containers and how to properly dispose of the waste in the valley's only disposal pit.

"Our goal was to provide a safe way to dispose of sharps," said Sergeant Bailey. "Hopefully this program will help eliminate disease and sickness spread by biohazardous waste. Overall, we feel it's already a success because it will ensure the safety of the medical workers and the people of Panjshir."