Volume 34, no. 4, April 2021. Water and health: a fragile balance threatened by the effects of environmental and climate change. Pandemic emergency and use of hand disinfectants in healthcare settings: how to assess the exposure for professionals. Conference. Detergents: state of the art and future prospects. Application of the legislation at national and European level - ISS (EN)

Abstracts:

Water and health: a fragile balance threatened by the effects of environmental and climate change
Water is a key element for Earth’s life and economic and social development. The overexploitation, human activities and related climate changes have increasing negative impacts on water quantity and quality and therefore on people's health. To meet increasing demand for water, waste water reuse and desalination are both possible solutions to solve the problem of water shortage. Complex climate-environment-water and health interactions require urgent actions to prevent and manage risks associated with anthropic pressures on natural systems and the use of resources. In Italy, an effective tool is represented by the Water Safety Plans (WSPs) for the drinking water supply chain and the Sanitation Safety Plans (SSP) for wastewater treatment and reuse. The Italian National Institute of Health, through the Environment and Health Department activities, issued the first national practice guidelines for WSPs implementation in the drinking water supply chain and is responsible for training activities, in order to ensure a suitable process for collective health prevention which is, in the same time, a sustainable and uniform water management system throughout the Country.

Pandemic emergency and use of hand disinfectants in healthcare settings: how to assess the exposure for professionals
The pandemic emergency has made the use of hand disinfection products urgent, particularly in healthcare settings where workers are highly exposed to the risk of infection. Disinfectants are placed on the market pursuant to the Presidential Decree no. 392/1998 on Medical Surgical Devices or the Regulation (EU) no. 528/2012 on biocides. In case of biocidal products, an authorization for marketing is granted pending the evaluation demonstrating both the efficacy and the safe use. In order to assess the exposure to biocidal products for hands disinfection, a methodology has been developed which combines different exposure models developed in EU with algorithms, aiming to describe a realistic exposure scenario.

Detergents: state of the art and future prospects. Application of the legislation at national and European level
Detergents, as well as other products intended for personal and setting hygiene, during COVID-19 pandemic have played a crucial role in strengthening hygiene practices aimed at struggling the SARS-CoV-2 virus but, if inappropriately marketed, they can become a health risk rather than being a protective tool. In order to clarify the pertinent regulatory framework the Italian National Institute of Health and the Italian Ministry of Health organized an online Conference to raise the awareness of professionals on the issue.