An Institutional Study on Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Related to Biomedical Waste Management Among the MBBS and Dental Interns

Background: Biomedical waste management is an important aspect of infection control in health care. Improper management of biomedical wastes can lead to serious health hazards to health professionals, patients, and the community, besides environmental hazards. Because interns in medical and dental streams are usually at the frontline and deal with biomedical wastes constantly, their knowledge, attitudes, and practices are crucial for the safe management of wastes. Objective: To assess the knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to biomedical waste management among medical and dental interns in a teaching institution. Methods: Between May and August of 2024 totally 201 interns (123 MBBS and 78 Dental) at the teaching college in the Chengalpattu district of Tamil Nadu participated in a cross-sectional study. A structured, pre-tested questionnaire with knowledge, attitude and practice components was used to gather the data. Chi-square tests were used to compare KAP levels between MBBS and dental interns and descriptive statistics were used to summarize responses. Results: Good knowledge was observed in 78.9% of MBBS interns as compared to 42.3% of dental interns, which is statistically significant (p < 0.001). Positive attitude was observed in 63 MBBS interns and in 60 dental interns, and the intergroup difference was statistically significant (p < 0.001). Good practice was followed by 75.6% of MBBS interns and by 57.7% of dental interns, which is again statistically significant (p < 0.001). Waste segregation practices and needle disposal practices were found to be satisfactory, but the use of PPE and knowledge about the duration of waste stored were very unsatisfactory. Conclusion: The overall awareness about and practice of biomedical waste management was satisfactory among the interns; however, there were significant gaps in operational knowledge and consistent safe practices. Increased practical training, refresher sessions periodically, and continuous monitoring throughout the internship period are recommended for ensuring safety and effectiveness in biomedical-waste handling in health institutions.