Biological hazards that can affect the health of the workers that handle hospital waste : a systematic review protocol

Abstract

Technological advances allow the science development, with the creation of new materials / equipment and the offer of different products and services. Some of these materials, after use, are discarded, becoming waste. Mismanagement of these wastes and improper handling within the hospital environment can cause serious harm to workers' health. Comprehensive studies in hospital settings are essential to increase knowledge about the risks that workers are exposed to, including biological hazards. Thus, a systematic review is proposed to obtain relevant information on these risks to plan future interventions appropriate to avoid related negative consequences. Thus, following the preferential reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analysis protocols (PRISMA-P), this systematic review protocol was developed with the objective of presenting suitable guidelines for the development of a research that can provide results to meet the goal sought. Five databases will be accessed (SCOPUS, PubMed, Science Direct, EBSCOhost and Web of Science) and a total of 9 keyword combinations will be used. This protocol is registered in PROSPERO under the code of PROSPERO CRD42019127145