Knowledge on biomedical waste management systems in Kerala among dental students

Biomedical waste is health care wastes generated during the diagnosis, treatment, or immunization of human or animal research activities pertaining thereto or in the production or testing of biologicals. The study aims to assess the knowledge on biomedical waste management systems in Kerala among dental students in the state. A questionnaire survey was conducted among dental students in Kerala. A total of 387 students participated in the present study. The data were then computed and analysed. The present study shows that 20.4% of the study participants knew that there are two common biomedical waste management treatment facilities in Kerala. It was observed that 51.4% of the participants knew that IMAGE treatment facility uses mobile application to monitor the biomedical waste collected from the health institutions. It was concluded that majority of the dental students had poor knowledge (69.3%) and 2.1% had good knowledge about the biomedical treatment facilities in Kerala. Key Words: Common Biomedical waste treatment facility, Dental students, Kerala, Knowledge