Description

Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) is seeking creative conceptual designs for innovative technologies to treat medical waste in rural areas while protecting public health, the safety of health care workers, and the environment. The designs will be made available in the public domain. HCWH will select and award contestants whose designs best meet technical criteria developed in consultation with the World Health Organization (WHO).

At present, many rural hospitals and clinics discard their medical waste with regular trash and risk the spread of diseases among scavenger populations. Some bury their waste possibly contributing to groundwater or surface contamination. Others burn their waste in make-shift incinerators thereby exposing communities downwind to toxic byproducts such as dioxins and mercury, and generating potentially hazardous ash. As immunization and rural health programs expand, the problem of medical waste treatment and disposal in rural areas becomes critical.

Purpose of the Competition

To engage students, faculty, health professionals, researchers, inventors, and others in the search for cleaner, safer, low-cost appropriate technologies to treat medical waste in rural areas.

The top three winners will be mentioned in international press releases and recognized on the HCWH website. All contestants who submit design entries will receive certificates of recognition from HCWH.

Background on HCWH

Made up of over 440 organizations in 55 countries, Health Care Without Harm is a campaign for environmentally responsible health care. The mission of Health Care Without Harm is to transform the health care industry worldwide, without compromising patient safety or care, so that it is ecologically sustainable and no longer a source of harm to public health and the environment. For more information, see http://www.noharm.org/.