ABSTRACT
Hospital wastewater refers to the effluent generated from various healthcare facilities,
including clinics, nursing homes, and laboratories. The aim of this research was to access
bacteria isolated from Hospital wastewater in Egor local Government area. Hospital
wastewater comprises all liquid waste streams produced as a byproduct of patient care,
medical procedures, diagnostic testing, and laboratory operations. It includes both liquid
discharges and solid waste streams, which are disposed of through sinks, drains, toilets,
and specialized medical waste disposal systems. Hospital wastewater is characterized by a
complex blend of contaminants stemming from various sources within healthcare
facilities. Hospital wastewater is a complex mixture originating from various sources
within healthcare facilities, including patient care, laboratory operations, medical
equipment cleaning, pharmaceutical usage, and staff and patient activities. The discharge
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from hospitals can be classified into four broad categories, i.e., blackwater, greywater,
stormwater, and specific discharges. The discharge of untreated or inadequately treated
hospital wastewater poses significant environmental and public health risks, contributing
to various adverse impacts on ecosystems, water quality, and human health. As the
contact with non-treated hospital wastewater and fecal wastes can increase the potential
of pathogen transmission, it is recommended that routine environmental investigation and
efficient treatment and disinfection of pathogens should be incorporated into the
treatment of hospital wastewater to reduce the risk of pathogen transmission. With the
prevalence of pharmaceutical compounds in hospital wastewater, specialized technologies
are employed to target their removal and degradation. Antibiotic susceptibility testing is a
critical laboratory method used to assess the effectiveness of antibiotics against specific
bacterial strains. Antibiotic resistance in hospital wastewater poses significant challenges
for public health and environmental sustainability. Hospital Wastewater samples were
collected from Echos Hospital, St. John Hospital, and Mount Gilead Hospital located in
Egor local government area, Edo State, Nigeria. Nutrient agar is a general purpose media
which favors the growth of all bacteria. This medium was prepared from commercially
available dehydrated powder, available from most suppliers of culture media. Discrete
colonies were sub-cultured by streak plate method in order to obtain pure culture.
Organisms with different characteristics were picked from the previously cultured plates
and sub-cultured on plates or slants containing the same medium from which they were
isolated. The results on the Assessment of bacteria from hospital wastewater in Egor
local Government area, Edo state are discussed in this chapter. The wastewater
discharged by hospitals presents health and environmental risks because of the nature and
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the importance of the substances they contain. The assessment of bacteria in hospital
wastewater serves as a vital tool for understanding resistance dynamics, guiding clinical
decision-making, and informing public health interventions aimed at combating antibiotic
resistance and preserving antibiotic effectiveness in healthcare and environmental
settings.
