Clinicians enter the world of dentistry to provide leading care, restore smiles and confidence, and carve out a business of their own. As part of everyday workflows, administrative tasks are ever important, even if they are not the most exciting elements of a clinical role.
These tasks include managing clinical waste, and these responsibilities help to keep patients, the clinical team, and waste handlers safe. A pre-acceptance waste audit is a paramount element of administration that must be organised to ensure waste items can actually be removed safely and legally from the practice site. It allows waste management services to know about the composition of the items it collects, which then means they can be confident in it being technically and legally suited to processing at their facility.[i]
Clinicians should be aware of what information needs to be included and how to complete pre-acceptance waste audits accurately and with full consideration for current regulations.
What to include
Pre-acceptance waste audits are required in line with Health Technical Memorandum 07-01 (HTM 07-01), which organises waste workflows to maximise safety and minimise the environmental impact of healthcare teams.[ii] They are used to ensure that waste items can be processed appropriately, depending on their properties, as hazardous materials may require more energy-intensive disposal methods such as incineration or unique handling considerations.
For example, if a waste management service has been informed that they are required to collect only offensive waste, a pre-acceptance waste audit creates an opportunity for more hazardous waste items to be highlighted. This ensures that they are not a part of the collection and can instead be managed by another service.
A dental clinic will need to provide details of the care provided on its site. This will assist a waste service team by narrowing down the types of waste they can expect to collect – a dental practice and a veterinary practice, though following many similar guidelines, will produce very different waste items, in contrasting volumes.
The dental team will also need to provide details of the waste streams used throughout the practice, including how many containers are used and the physical form of waste, including its composition, properties, classification and descriptions. A waste management service will carry out checks alongside this information, but the audit can form the basis of their workflow.[iii]
Amongst this, an audit must include which waste types are produced in each area of the premises. For example, a room that is used to store pharmaceutical items will produce a greater volume of this type of waste in comparison to a clinical theatre, even though pharmaceutical waste will also likely be produced in some quantity in both.
Using an audit to your advantage
A pre-acceptance waste audit is vital to ensure a practice stays in line with current regulations. However, it is not a box-ticking exercise. Instead, an audit of this kind can help to inform changes throughout the practice. HTM 07-01 notes that a pre-acceptance waste audit can be used to help adjust the number and types of bins used throughout the dental practice. By regularly assessing the waste items produced, one can judge whether larger storage containers are necessary or if different clinicians produce a higher volume of a specific type of waste, depending on the care they provide.
For example, a dental professional who works closely with anxious patients may carry out an increased number of workflows with a patient under sedation. Often provided via IV sedation, this will create pharmaceutical waste that is often disposed of in the yellow waste container for safety, though only infectious pharmaceutical waste requires this stream under HTM 07-01. A larger container may be required for their room compared to another clinician in the same practice, due primarily to the space taken up by IV bags and lines. A pre-acceptance waste audit that identifies this can ensure a clinical team has adequate storage on hand.
If a practice also sets goals aligned with waste management, for example, to reduce the creation of single-use plastic items, a pre-acceptance waste audit can help to judge whether such an aim is being achieved. Once again, if it identifies that an area – or the entirety of the practice – is struggling to meet established targets, an actionable plan can be put in place. This may also help to inform conversations about a practice’s alignment with policies and strategies, including the NHS Clinical Waste Strategy. Where a practice is performing well, clinical teams can be recognised for their work.
Support for your audit
Detailed, accurate information is vital for a pre-acceptance waste audit. Failure to appropriately declare hazardous items may mean that waste containers cannot be disposed of or collected, creating concerns throughout the dental team.
Initial Medical is a leading waste management service that can offer expert advice and guidance in all workflows. This includes insights into how to comply with pre-acceptance waste audits, alongside a range of clinical waste containers that ensure the safety of your team and waste handlers. Team members are consistently on hand to provide support, no matter your waste-based queries.
The pre-acceptance waste audit is a paramount aspect of clinical waste management. Understanding the information that needs to be included and where you can receive extra support will ensure that everyday collections pass smoothly, allowing you to focus on dentistry.
To find out more, get in touch at 0808 304 7411 or visit the website today www.initial.co.uk/medical
Author: Rebecca Waters – Rentokil Initial Medical
[i] Environmental Agency, (2021). Healthcare waste. Appropriate measures for permitted facilities. (Online) Available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/healthcare-waste-appropriate-measures-for-permitted-facilities/waste-pre-acceptance-acceptance-and-tracking-appropriate-measures [Accessed April 2026]
[ii] (NHS England, (2023). Health Technical Memorandum 07-01: Safe and sustainable management of healthcare waste. (Online) Available at: https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/B2159iii-health-technical-memorandum-07-01.pdf [Accessed April 2026])
[iii] (Environmental Agency, (2021). Healthcare waste. Appropriate measures for permitted facilities. (Online) Available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/healthcare-waste-appropriate-measures-for-permitted-facilities/waste-pre-acceptance-acceptance-and-tracking-appropriate-measures [Accessed April 2026])
About Initial Medical
Initial Medical set the standard in healthcare and infectious waste management in the UK, providing a reliable, effective and fully compliant service built around customer needs and delivered by our highly trained local teams. We are ISO 9001:2015 accredited, with technology fully integrated into our operations, providing full traceability of service delivery, electronic waste documentation and the best customer experience possible. We also offer innovative healthcare waste management services and infection control products to help break the chain of transmission and prevent cross contamination. Initial Medical are a company with a ‘World Class’ Health and Safety record, and ISO 45001:2018 accreditation. We are also accredited to ISO 14001:2015 environmental standards and pride ourselves on our sustainable approach with a focus on delivering eco-friendly products and operational solutions.
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