Spring Cleaning
by Kelly R Estilette

               Spring had sprung creating a blossoming environment for romantic relationships, including my own. My beau, Ernest, had been courting me for years having drummed up the courage during this inspiring spring season to present me with a promise ring. I blissfully accepted the gesture and began a daily routine of cleaning, protecting and of course, showing off my symbolic bauble.

             Having been born to a long line of workaholics, my hours at work were true to my genetics. Mainly, I serve as an animal ICU/ER nurse which involves long shifts and tight knit team members. I also provide my medical skills at human medical clinics and volunteer in human health. The common thread in all my daily roles in any medical capacity is working with drugs, chemicals, and a healthy dose of hand washing. In turn this leads to an inordinate number of times per day that I take my promise ring off and on. One shift a canine patient was admitted suffering from generalized sarcoptic mange and secondary staph infection resulting in oozing yellow crust, hair loss and pustules covering over 90% of the epidermis.  Treatment protocols were immediately enacted which included a topical treatment with Mitaban which is an antiparasitic drug used to treat mites. Needless to say, my beloved jewel could not be exposed to this abrasive chemical. No…. not even through a glove. I placed my ring beside the treatment area and began Mitaban therapy for the patient. That was the last time I saw my promise ring. Consumed with the treatment and comfort of this patient I completely forgot about my ring until my shift had ended. I searched the entire hospital to no avail. It had been mere weeks since I received the gift and on that particular day the spring had also brought a barrage of stormy rain. Refusing to leave the hospital until my ring was back on my hand I decided it must have been accidentally tossed out with the garbage. Picture me, in scrubs, in the pouring rain, in a dumpster tearing through bag after bag of hospital garbage. Ernest had come to meet me after my shift had ended and so was witness to my frantically sweet yet disgusting decision to wade through a dumpster and says to this day that the very sight of it confirmed his love for me. The last bag of garbage I grabbed was soaking wet, the rain was pouring so hard I could barely see, but I reached in anyway and grabbed a handful of something and pulled it out to search. I heard Ernest’s voice behind me, “What is that?” I looked hard, squinted through the rain, then turned to him and said, “Those are ovaries.”

               Ernest and I later split, although not because of the events that day. And I did not find my ring that day, soaked to the bone and blinded by nature’s fury of rain but what I did find in that moment changed me forever. I found medical waste, I found human irresponsibility at the hands of medical professionals, I found medical businesses trying to save money by throwing out hazardous waste rather than pay for the third-party company to pick it up and dispose of it properly. And I’ve kept my eyes open ever since.

               Medical waste is defined by the EPA as anything that contains bodily fluid or waste and according to Medical Waste Services 10-15% of medical waste is considered infectious with both bacteria and viruses and is also laden with toxins. This waste ends up in our water supply, food supply affecting human health. It also affects sea-life and the health of plants and animals exposed. Many human and animal medical facilities including stem cell research companies wantonly relieve themselves of medical waste into the ocean or local water supplies for easy, cheap disposal.

               These practices put all life at risk and beg the question, if we cannot depend on the practices of those in the business of keeping us healthy, who can we depend on?

REFERENCES:

Stern, D. The Effects of Medical Waste Being Dumped in the Ocean

Stern, Denise. "The Effects Of Medical Waste Being Dumped In The Ocean". LIVESTRONG.COM, 2018, https://www.livestrong.com/article/177094-the-effects-of-medical-waste-being-dumped-in-the-ocean/. Accessed 1 Apr 2018.

"Mitaban Dip Treatments For Demodectic Mange". Vetinfo, 2018, https://www.vetinfo.com/mitaban-dip-treatments.html. Accessed 1 Apr 2018.

Medical Waste | US EPA "Medical Waste | US EPA". US EPA, 2018, https://www.epa.gov/rcra/medical-waste. Accessed 1 Apr 2018.