As early as l983, the World Health Organization has reported that hospital wastes  are  dangerous threats to ecological balance and public health.  Accordingly, wastes generated by these institutions if allowed to enter the waste stream, thereby requiring disposal, would cause unimaginable bane to society like pathological, radioactive, chemical, infectious, and pharmaceutical wastes. These wastes if allowed into the environment  would surely cause outbreaks of communicable diseases, diarrheal epidemics, water contamination, radioactive fall-outs and the like. Wastewater flow coming from health care establishments contain incompatible pollutants which would necessarily be dangerous to the environment. Hospitals not connected to a city or municipal wastewater treatment would require on-site treatment, nevertheless, if such is connected to the city's sewerage system it would still be dangerous as it may find its way to the locality's rivers. On the other hand, sludge from on-site plants should be managed with the same precautions as for municipal waste sludge, e.g. it should not be spread on food crops unless properly treated. Chemicals used in health care establishments are potential source of pollution, mainly to water via the sewer system. These chemicals may contaminate the city's water system or bring about diseases i.e. skin diseases, enteric illness. On the wayside, micro-organisms from hospital wastewater might cause outbreaks of diarrheal diseases, e.g. cholera, etc. Most solid wastes from health care establishments consisting of sharps, tubings, bandages, sponges, food wastes are either classified as pathological or radioactive wastes. On the other hand, food wastes from health-establishment kitchens, cultures/stocks from the laboratory and wastes from surgeries and autopsies are usually of chemical or infectious wastes nature. Furthermore, excessive solids can cause problems at sewage treatment plants. Another aspect of concern is the disposal of feces and urine from patients in isolation wards. Particularly during epidemics where emergency disinfection of waste from a large number of infectious patients is required. All these problems on solid wastes disposal would add-up to the already insurmountable problem of lack of landfill locations and land contamination. Davao City is not spared of this problem.
 
Under the provisions of Presidential Decree No. 856 otherwise known as the Code on Sanitation of the Philippines, the Department of Health (DOH) is  tasked   of  ensuring the proper disposal of  hospital waste.
So far, it has managed to  add a Hospital Waste Management Program in the requirements for the renewal of hospital licensure. To this day however, the Hospital Waste Management activities, still need to be reviewed and improved not only to meet the standard requirements of health authorities but more important to protect the environment and the public. 

In Davao City,   research  conducted by  environmental law students of the Ateneo de Davao University College of Law shows that the three major hospitals in Davao City have established regulating bodies to undertake the implementation, regulation, control and evaluation of their hospital waste management program.  But  whether these  programs are carried out  is another thing.   The  Davao Medical Center for example, the city's pioneer and main health care facility has its own infectious disease consultants and epidemologists to carry out the DOH objective of establishing healthy hospitals having a conducive environment for healthcare. It has  the most Comprehensive Waste Management Program with a complete manual from DOH'S environmental health service division.  But  bureaucratic red tapes and  lack of  funds have hampered the implementation of these guidelines to the fullest.

All in all, the volume of very hazardous hospital wastes exposed to the community through  the public disposal system  is growing by leaps and bounds which is threat to environment. To minimize these external health and environmental risks, action should be taken to deal with pollutants at their source. To this end, waste should be segregated and concentrated within health care establishments to simplify its management and wherever feasible, waste should be recycled so that it does not enter the waste stream requiring disposal. To safeguard against water pollution, measures should be taken at source to reduce the quantity and strength of incompatible pollutants in the wastewater flow.   Chemicals used in health care establishments are a potential source of pollution, mainly to water via the sewer system. An on-site chemical waste survey should be a  prerequisite to the development of an effective Waste Management Program.  Any hazardous chemical waste generated should be dealt with by a proper chemical waste management system.  Waste Chemicals should be recycled whenever possible. There should be scope for substituting chemicals with less environmental impact than those at present in use.
 

 The use of disinfectants should be minimized when there are alternatives.  This would reduce the quantity of waste disinfectants produced where a large amount of dilution water is available.  However, disinfectants may safely be disposed of the sewer.   Feces and urine from patients in isolation wards should be disinfected before disposal in the sewer.  Provision should be made in case of an epidemic for the emergency disinfection of waste from a large number of infectious patients, before disposal in the sewer system. General waste and properly-treated infectious waste can safely be disposed of in a sanitary landfill, but special measures may be necessary for aesthetic reasons.
 
Davao City's environmental balance at present is in jeopardy what with the flourishing subdivision development activities and the construction boom.  All of these activities has taken its toll on the city's s waste disposal system. These health care waste generators if unattended  could introduce as much high risk pathological, chemical, infectious pharmaceutical and radioactive wastes to the city's garbage  woes all the more.