Environmental Awareness, Pro-Environmental Behaviour and Quality of Waste Management in Health Services

Abstract

The improper disposal of solid waste in the environment represents a major challenge for humanity, especially in developing countries, due to the vulnerability of a significant portion of their population. Waste from health services requires greater attention, since they represent a threat to the environment and to health. The objective of this research was to investigate the state of environmental awareness, the pro-environmental behaviour and the quality of waste management in health services in a federal institution of higher education (IFES – Instituição Federal de Ensino Superior), establishing the relationship between these three constructs. A descriptive research was carried out,as a survey, with data obtained through the application of questionnaires in a sample of 154 participants. Likert scale was used with level of agreement from zero to ten with regard to statements that make up the constructs surveyed. The structural equation modeling allowed for the study of the relationships between the three dimensions. Among the models tested, the best fitted one revealed a significant relationship between environmental awareness and pro-environmental behaviour, and between this and the quality management of waste from health services. Environmental awareness influence in the quality of waste management has not been proven.