Home Sharps Disposal

[chaste]

So my local authority uses a private contractor PHS Allclear to collect sharp bins from my doorstep
and drop off like for like replacements at the same time, all on a pre appointed basis;

This week 7 litres of sharps were not collected, the customer service phoneline is referring to email only
and their website offers no specific instruction.

They are key workers, but suffering under the same impacts as the rest of us, quite understandable.

Meanwhile, other than going back to the old school way of collecting them in an empty plastic bottle,
[Yes there really was a time back in the 80s when we were advised to do this and then screw lid on and put it in the bin!!!] ...what else should we do in the short term?!

 

[Muneeb]

I stopped using sharp bins ages ago. Have put them in a general bin. But I make sure needle caps etc are back on before they go in.

 

[lessci]

Can you snip the tip, store that safely and dispose of the rest in your general waste?

 

[michita]

I stopped using sharp bins ages ago. Have put them in a general bin. But I make sure needle caps etc are back on before they go in.

I do the same. I collected them in an empty cat food box and tape the box all over and put it in a bin. It’s just not practical to leave them outside to be collected. I wish GP or chemists would to collection.

 

[becca59]

Just going to stack mine up and wait.

 

[lizdeluz]

Get a Safeclip from the pharmacy or from the diabetes clinic. You put the used needle into the slot on the Safeclip. It cuts off the needle and stores it inside itself. Then put the plastic cap over the stump of the dead needle and put that into general rubbish. It takes a long long time for dead bits of needle to fill up the Safeclip.

 

[Broomthebeast]

I put them in plastic milk bottles, lid shut, and into the bin

 

[chaste]

The BD safeclip! Yes I remember them now, were great when they were first introduced but very soon afterwards either the quality of the guillotine changed or the needle steel strengthened and they stopped snipping the needles after just one or two days. Probably a good idea to see if they have improved, thanks all, I will reorder one next prescription.

These sharps are a biohazard and need incinerating; I'd really, really hate to be a bin man or work at the refuse centre where anyone still chucking them in the bin lives but do agree the onus should be on us to bring them to a pharmacy or GP for collection rather than door step, but that's NHS privatisation all over.

 

[sportyboston]

In Australia we drop them off at the local hospital and get a like for like container for our next lot. Still able to do this even with the pandemic. I would hate it if someone got a needle stick injury because I threw it in the bin. I know they are free from disease but the poor worker doesn't.

 

[Rokaab]

In Australia we drop them off at the local hospital and get a like for like container for our next lot. Still able to do this even with the pandemic. I would hate it if someone got a needle stick injury because I threw it in the bin. I know they are free from disease but the poor worker doesn't.

I know that's very similar to what I do, except I can drop mine off at my docs (a 4 min walk from my house) and get a new one from there, but it does differ from place to place as to how it works, I hope that even with the current lockdown my docs will have something sorted for swapping to new ones, but I got a new one recently so am good for the mo.