Wastewater treatment zone in a central hospital (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Standard medical wastewater treatment systems have been set up in only 60 percent of total 13,000 healthcare clinics nationwide, said Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long at a conference held in Hanoi on March 30.
Investment and upgrades are still underway in other hospitals with rudimentary treatment system, Long added, highlighting that a shortage of capital, hospitals’ concern and social attention is the main barrier.
It is necessary to build a standout mechanism for the rental of medical wastewater treatment services as the Ministry of Health (MoH) has set a target that wastewater treatment facilities will be installed in all hospitals by 2020 to protect the environment.
According to head of the MoH’s Health Environment Management Agency Nguyen Thi Lien Huong, only 62 percent of central hospitals have quality treatment systems while the figures in provincial hospitals and district hospitals are 59.3 percent and 65.9 percent, respectively.
Thus, there is a large amount of hospital waste water discharged into the environment daily, Huong stressed while pointing out that limited capacity to manage wastewater treatment system has resulted in inefficient operation of the facilities.
Conference participants discussed the allocation of capital for renting medical wastewater treatment services, waste water treatment costs and maintenance costs.
According to the Prime Minister’s related draft decision, state-owned hospitals are allowed to rent medical wastewater treatment services to ensure that wastewater output meets environmental standards. The rental cost is included in medical examination expenses.-VNA
VNA
