Disposal of Empty Transfusion Bag and IV Set

[NotYourMamasRN]

Hi All,

How do you dispose of an empty transfusion bag and IV set? Do you place it in regular trash or biohazard bags? I have seen both methods and I cannot find an actual hospital policy on it so I wanted to see how you handle it.

Thank you.

[NurseGirl525, ASN, RN]

Bio container

[CelticGoddess, BSN, RN]

The policy at my facility is to put the set into the bag they blood came from the blood bank from, and place it in a red bio-hazard bin (which is lined with a red biohazard bag).

If you can't find the policy, I would ask your CUE (or manager or whoever does education for your unit). Surely they have one.

[loriangel14, RN]

Ours go in the bio disposal.

[Sour Lemon]

Three ways: If it's empty and has a glass component, it goes in a sharps/biohazard bin. If it has no glass component, but contains more than a trace amount of medication, it goes in a different biohazard bin. If it's empty and has no glass component, the patient information gets covered with a sticker and it goes in the regular trash.

People are always putting things in the wrong bins.

Edit: I just realized we're talking about blood. Our empty bag and all the tubing goes in a biohazard bad with a filled out post-transfusion slip. Lab eventually comes to pick it up, but I have no idea what happens to it after that.

[pluckyduck, MSN, NP]

Red biohazard bin.

[Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN]

Bio bag with the yellow transfusion slip attached (with the unit #, unit info, pt info, expiration etc.) White carbon copy goes in pt chart.