Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2003. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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Miami Herald - February 22, 2003
Ana Rhodes, arhodes@herald.com
The Wansiki Foundation occupied offices on the third floor of the building at 1815 E. Commercial Blvd. Its telephone number was still working late Friday.
Employees didn't realize they were throwing away needles and other biomedical waste when they threw the garbage in the dumpster, said attorney Norman Kent, spokesman for the foundation. The items were mixed with other trash, he said.
The Wansiki Foundation was a nonprofit AIDS clinic with three doctors and a nurse practitioner on staff. Until recently, about 1,000 HIV patients were seen there each week.
It was founded in 1985 by Marie J. Wansiki, who was listed in October as executive director. In July, the University of Miami brought clinical trials of new AIDS drugs to to the Fort Lauderdale clinic, allowing people access to new drugs and vaccines at no cost. The partnership also gave UM access to potential participants in its studies.
"By state law, any discarded sharp [object], whether it be full of blood or not, poses a public health risk," said Michael Spindell, biomedical waste coordinator for the Broward County Health Department. "Our concern was getting it picked up, not prosecution."
The Health Department got a call about 9:30 a.m. Friday from a doctor's office in the same building complaining about the trash pile, Spindell said.
Among the garbage were unused needles, urine sample bottles, tubes, and tape.
Witnesses said the pile had been there about two days. Spindell said that it took Biomed, a biomedical waste transport company, five hours to remove all the debris and biomedical waste. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection will investigate the incident, Spindell said. Charges are unlikely because the materials were unopened, he said.
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