When you first sign up with a medical waste management company, it can be difficult to determine if you're truly receiving good value from that company. Whether you're currently signed up with a company or are still looking into your options, here are some key points to keep in mind about what you should expect from all medical waste management companies.
How to Tell If Your Medical Waste Management Company Is Working for You
Medical Waste Disposal Cost: Ensure You're Getting Great Value
One of the biggest factors you need to examine is the cost of waste management and whether what you're paying seems reasonable and fair for the number of medical waste boxes you ship per month (or quarter or year).
Be especially certain to do the math if you're thinking about signing up for a waste management contract. These contracts tend to entail a high monthly fee that includes many services (such as OSHA compliance training, document destruction, waste pickups, and so on).
This variety of included services might sound great. However, depending on your medical waste pickup needs, it could easily lead to overcharging. Ask yourself key questions to determine if a contract is right for you.
Read the Fine Print: OSHA Fines
Some companies, at the highest monthly fee, claim they will pay any fines you incur through an OSHA audit. This is ostensibly because they are so confident about the quality of service they're providing. Yes, that sounds fantastic, but is it too good to be true? Make sure to read all the fine print to find out.
Often, when you get into the smaller fonts of a contract, you'll find these companies have many ways to ultimately avoid paying these fines. For example, they'll list within the contract all the things you need to do to make them financially responsible. If you fail to do anything within that checklist, they are no longer required to cover your fines.
Waste Management Service Agreement: Pay for What You Use
The key to getting the most out of your waste management company is finding someone who is equipped to offer all the services you need but only charges for what you use. This often means signing a waste management service agreement rather than a contract.
Now, if you generate a huge volume of medical waste and necessitate frequent pickups, then perhaps a contract is the best value for your company. However, if you're a midrange to small medical facility, paying per medical waste box tends to lower your waste disposal costs (without compromising on quality of service).
Similarly, you shouldn't have to pay for annual OSHA training every month if you only need it a couple times a year. The same goes for document shredding. If you only produce a few boxes of sensitive documents per year, there's no reason to be paying a monthly fee that assumes you're using this service month in and month out.
Only paying for what you use is the easiest way to keep your waste management pricing reasonable and fair.
Contract or Agreement: A Company Should Provide What It Promises
No matter what kind of agreement you have with a given company, they should always stand by what they promise you. Whatever is in the contract or agreement, a good company will honor the terms you have both agreed upon—in terms of everything from waste management price to when they'll be at your facility for a pickup.
Choose a Company that Puts a Premium on Customer Service
Customer service matters a great deal in the medical waste disposal industry. If you aren't receiving personalized attention and timely resolutions to your issues, you simply aren't getting the most out of your company.
For more information about how to determine if your company is providing the best medical waste services, please feel free to contact a representative of MCF Environmental Services, an Atlanta waste management company.
