A new decade… A new HECAF!
On 1 January 2020 HECAF's Health Care Waste Management Program officially became Health Environment Climate Action Foundation (HECAF 360)
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The name change reflects new developments at HECAF 360 offering a wider range of affordable appropriate technology solutions to environmentally sound healthcare waste management concerns in the developing world.
Former HECAF, now HECAF 360 was established in 1994.​ The Health Care Waste Management Program was launched in 2006 built around an ageing and refurbished autoclave.​ Today HECAF's Health Care Waste Management Program is widely recognised for its pioneering appropriate technology solutions to managing harmful pathological and clinical waste.
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Guidelines and Principles
ZERO RISK.Make hospitals and other health care facilities SAFE, for patients, for staff – both medical staff and housekeeping – and for the communities in which the hospitals and clinics are located.
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NO BURN. HECAF is committed to the elimination of incineration of medical waste throughout the country.
ZERO WASTE. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle is the mantra governing every implementation of a Health Care Waste Management project.
PROJECTS HECAF 360
Making Nepal's Waste Management Safer
HOSPITALS
HECAF has implemented Health Care Waste Management projects in over 25 in-patient hospitals throughout the country.
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These multi-bed facilities can now recycle much of the waste they generate, including pathological wastes.
Each project begins with an elaborate
diagnostic assessment of the kinds of wastes being generated and an evaluation of the safest and most effective methods of reusing, recycling or disposing of the waste.
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To see a few examples of this work click on the "More" link below.
Small Facilities
Clinics and out-patient treatment centers in both urban and rural environments also generate health care waste and pose risks to patients, staff and the community at large if the waste generated is not properly treated and processed.
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Just as with the large multi-bed hospitals, clinics and out patient centers rely on a careful diagnostic evaluation before any project is designed and implemented.
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To see a few examples of health care waste management at small facilities click the "More" button below.
Specialty Projects
It's not just hospitals and clinics that generate health care waste.
Pharmaceutical waste is also a major problem once products exceed their use-by date.Expired pharmaceuticals must be handled in a safe and responsible manner when being disposed of.
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HECAF has devised a program that can safely recycle a great of the the waste from expired pharmaceuticals.
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To learn more about HECAF's work with pharmaceutical waste click the link below.
In Nepal schools are also generating potentially infectious waste because of a recent Government of Nepal policy making menstrual hygiene pads available to schoolgirls.
The safe disposal of these sanitary pads is an issue that HECAF has also addressed. Click to Menstrual Hygiene to see more
Zero Waste
Zero Waste is a set of principles focused on waste prevention that encourages "rethinking" what waste is and "redesigning" how waste is handled so that all products are reused.
The goal is for no trash to be sent to landfills, incinerators, or waterways.
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As much as possible HECAF deploys Zero Waste principles in its Health Care Waste Management work.
Partners
Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) is an international nongovernmental organization (NGO) that works to transform health care worldwide so that it reduces its environmental footprint. Health Care Without Harm is a leader in the global movement for environmental health and justice and acts locally as a community anchor for sustainability.
Government of Nepal
The Government of Nepal and especially its Ministry of Health have long supported HECAF in its Health Care Waste Management Program.
The Ministry's willingness to confront the potential public health disaster presented by careless and irresponsible disposal of health care wastes was instrumental in the implementation and dissemination of HECAF's pioneering waste management work.
