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Sharp bins play a vital role in the safe disposal of used needles and other sharps in preventing injury. Initial Medical’s sharps bins provide safe storage and disposal for all categories of sharps waste. Our range of bins is UN-approved, colour-coded, and available in various sizes to meet your requirements and ensure waste is segregated correctly prior to collection.
As part of our sharps bin disposal service, your local Initial Medical consultant will work with you to understand your requirements and ensure your sharps waste streams are safe and compliant. Helping you to protect your staff and the environment and mitigate the risk of cross-contamination and spread of infection from improper disposal.
A sharps bin is a specialised container designed to safely collect and store used sharps, such as needles, syringes, pipettes and blades. Sharps bins are made from puncture resistant plastic and have a sealed lid with a disposal door to help minimise the risk of needlestick injuries. Proper disposal of sharps is essential to prevent injuries, reduce the risk of infections, and protect the environment.
Sharps bins come in various types to accommodate different needs and environments:
The size and capacity of sharps bins can vary to accommodate different levels of waste production. Available in a range of sizes from 0.5 litres to 32 litres, and colour-coded to fit your working practices. If you are unsure of the size you require, our Initial Medical team will be happy to advise which is best for you based on your needs and requirements.
Our sharps bin range is colour-coded in accordance with the NHS colour code guidelines to allow sharps users in your practice to easily identify which container they need to use. To help educate your team on following the correct waste stream, we also have free downloadable colour code posters.
We support businesses with safe management and sharps disposal. As part of our sharps bin collection service, your local Initial Medical consultant will work with you to understand your requirements and ensure your sharps waste streams are safe and compliant.
Safe onsite sharps disposal: - We provide you with ISO and UN-approved sharps bins for you to have on site. These are colour-coded to your specific waste stream needs.
Sharps bin collection: - Once full our ADR accredited technicians who are licensed to carry clinical waste will collect and transport your sharps bins for onward disposal. As part of our sharps bin collection service, we provide you with paperless waste documentation available to view and download from our customer portal myInitial.
Scalable solutions: - Our bins come in a range of sizes, with point-of-use systems available so we can tailor your sharps service to suit your needs.
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Our sharps bins are made from at least 40% recycled plastic, and are fully compliant with UN3291 and ISO 23907-1:2019 standards.
Following NHS guidelines, sharps bins should be disposed of every three months, as an infection control measure. To ensure their safe disposal, all sharps bins must be fully closed before reaching three-quarters full. Depending on your sharp waste output, we can provide additional bins and tailor the frequency of your service.
With safety in mind, you must keep your sharps bins on a temporary lock in between uses of the container to prevent the risk of sharps injuries. Once three quarters full, your sharps bins must be fully locked and stored in a secure storage area in accordance with the Controlled Waste Regulations 2012.
Your storage area must be locked at all times and your sharps bins should be segregated from other healthcare waste products in your practice.
If the sharps bins are on a temporary lock, simply open the disposal door to dispose of the sharps. However, once fully closed the sharps bin becomes fully sealed and there is no way to open them. Should this happen we can collect your sharps bin and provide you with a new one.
Best practice is to keep your sharps bin on a temporary lock whilst not in use.
Where extra precautions need to be taken, we also provide Safer Sharps Cabinets. These welded steel cabinets remove access to sharps containers whilst in use. They are particularly useful in high-risk environments, such as drug rehabilitation centres.
You can obtain sharps bins from several sources, including:
