From BBC News:
As much as £1 worth of every £20 spent on prescription drugs is never used by patients, according to the NHS.
A Scottish GP has called for a recycling scheme to stop hundreds of millions of pounds worth of unused drugs going to waste.
Some unused drugs are returned to pharmacists and incinerated, others are just binned by patients.
Dr James Douglas wants unopened medicines to be offered to patients who need them for free.
Drugs are often thrown away because clinicians over-prescribe or because patients fail to take their medicines. ...more
Showing posts with label medication disposal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label medication disposal. Show all posts
Monday, October 27, 2008
Monday, April 07, 2008
Experts unfazed by drugs in water
From the Toronto Star:
Painkillers and other drugs that are flushed down toilets will inevitably pour out of household taps in trace amounts around the world, a University of Toronto expert says.
Civil engineer Ron Hofmann, who specializes in drinking-water toxins, says a recent report finding painkillers, antibiotics and cholesterol-lowering drugs in the water coming from 15 southern Ontario treatment plants was "not surprising at all" to people in the field.
"There's a raft of studies that show these (drugs) are coming through the waste water treatment plants." he said.
Hofmann said the drugs enter the water supply when people pass trace amounts of unmetabolized medications through their urine, or throw unused pills down the sink or toilet. ...more
Painkillers and other drugs that are flushed down toilets will inevitably pour out of household taps in trace amounts around the world, a University of Toronto expert says.
Civil engineer Ron Hofmann, who specializes in drinking-water toxins, says a recent report finding painkillers, antibiotics and cholesterol-lowering drugs in the water coming from 15 southern Ontario treatment plants was "not surprising at all" to people in the field.
"There's a raft of studies that show these (drugs) are coming through the waste water treatment plants." he said.
Hofmann said the drugs enter the water supply when people pass trace amounts of unmetabolized medications through their urine, or throw unused pills down the sink or toilet. ...more
Thursday, April 03, 2008
Spring clean your medicine cabinet
From the Calgary Herald:
Cleaning out the medicine cabinet is like cleaning out the fridge, but with a lot less "ewwws!"
The expired medications and health stuff you find may be years past the best-before date, but at least it's not leftovers covered in fuzzy green mould or foul-smelling, stomach-turning black slime.
The worst thing Kory Sloan of St. Albert, Alta., encountered while cleaning out his grandfather's cupboards was a bottle of really old pain-relieving tablets that smelled like vinegar. The smell is a sign the medication has gone bad.
Not that you should stick your nose into an expired container before deciding to chuck it out.
"The first thing they teach you in pharmacy school is don't put your nose into anything," says Edmonton pharmacist Ali Damani.
"If it's toxic, you could pass out from it." ...more
Cleaning out the medicine cabinet is like cleaning out the fridge, but with a lot less "ewwws!"
The expired medications and health stuff you find may be years past the best-before date, but at least it's not leftovers covered in fuzzy green mould or foul-smelling, stomach-turning black slime.
The worst thing Kory Sloan of St. Albert, Alta., encountered while cleaning out his grandfather's cupboards was a bottle of really old pain-relieving tablets that smelled like vinegar. The smell is a sign the medication has gone bad.
Not that you should stick your nose into an expired container before deciding to chuck it out.
"The first thing they teach you in pharmacy school is don't put your nose into anything," says Edmonton pharmacist Ali Damani.
"If it's toxic, you could pass out from it." ...more
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Drugs in Water Hurt Fish and Wildlife
From the Associated Press:
On this brisk, glittering morning, a flat-bottomed boat glides across the massive reservoir that provides Las Vegas its drinking water. An ominous rumble growls beneath the craft as its two long, electrified claws extend into the depths.
Moments later, dozens of stunned fish float to the surface.
Federal scientists scoop them up and transfer them into 50-quart Coleman ice chests for transport to a makeshift lab on the dusty lakeshore. Within the hour, the researchers will club the seven-pound common carps to death, draw their blood, snip out their gonads and pack them in aluminum foil and dry ice.
The specimens will be flown across the country to laboratories where aquatic toxicologists are studying what happens to fish that live in water contaminated with at least 13 different medications — from over-the-counter pain killers to prescription antibiotics and mood stabilizers.
More often than not these days, the laboratory tests bring unwelcome results.
A five-month Associated Press investigation has determined that trace amounts of many of the pharmaceuticals we take to stay healthy are seeping into drinking water supplies, and a growing body of research indicates that this could harm humans. ...more
On this brisk, glittering morning, a flat-bottomed boat glides across the massive reservoir that provides Las Vegas its drinking water. An ominous rumble growls beneath the craft as its two long, electrified claws extend into the depths.
Moments later, dozens of stunned fish float to the surface.
Federal scientists scoop them up and transfer them into 50-quart Coleman ice chests for transport to a makeshift lab on the dusty lakeshore. Within the hour, the researchers will club the seven-pound common carps to death, draw their blood, snip out their gonads and pack them in aluminum foil and dry ice.
The specimens will be flown across the country to laboratories where aquatic toxicologists are studying what happens to fish that live in water contaminated with at least 13 different medications — from over-the-counter pain killers to prescription antibiotics and mood stabilizers.
More often than not these days, the laboratory tests bring unwelcome results.
A five-month Associated Press investigation has determined that trace amounts of many of the pharmaceuticals we take to stay healthy are seeping into drinking water supplies, and a growing body of research indicates that this could harm humans. ...more
Saturday, March 08, 2008
Return old pills to pharmacy, don't flush down the toilet: B.C. health minister
From CBC News:
Health Minister George Abbott says tossing old pills into the garbage or flushing them down the toilet can make animals, people and the environment sick.
He urged British Columbians on Tuesday to take their unused prescription drugs and medicine to a local pharmacist where they will be safely stored and disposed of at a later date.
Thousands of kilograms of medications are thrown out every year in British Columbia, Abbott said.
Old pills tossed in the garbage may be found by children or animals and they can end up leaching into ground water from local landfills, Abbott said.
And pills dumped down the toilet or sink end up in local sewage systems and some can find their way into drinking water systems, he said.
...more
Health Minister George Abbott says tossing old pills into the garbage or flushing them down the toilet can make animals, people and the environment sick.
He urged British Columbians on Tuesday to take their unused prescription drugs and medicine to a local pharmacist where they will be safely stored and disposed of at a later date.
Thousands of kilograms of medications are thrown out every year in British Columbia, Abbott said.
Old pills tossed in the garbage may be found by children or animals and they can end up leaching into ground water from local landfills, Abbott said.
And pills dumped down the toilet or sink end up in local sewage systems and some can find their way into drinking water systems, he said.
...more
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Earth-friendly drug disposal
From the Vancouver Sun:
Most people instinctively know that it isn't a good idea to flush their expired or unused medications down the drain, says pharmacist Wendy Mays.
But many aren't sure of what is the best way to clear the unused and expired medications out of their homes, she says. The safe and environmentally friendly way to ensure old or unused medications are disposed of properly is to take them in to a community pharmacy that participates in the Medications Return Program.
"Not a lot of people are aware of the program," says Wendy, a pharmacist and owner of two Pharmasave stores, one in West Vancouver and one in Ladner. "I find when people actually do find out about it they're delighted to have found the service."
More than 90 per cent of British Columbia's pharmacies take part in the Medications Return Program. They collect unused and expired medicines from their pharmacy patients, and hand them over to an organization that uses an environmentally friendly incineration process to dispose of them safely. ...more
Most people instinctively know that it isn't a good idea to flush their expired or unused medications down the drain, says pharmacist Wendy Mays.
But many aren't sure of what is the best way to clear the unused and expired medications out of their homes, she says. The safe and environmentally friendly way to ensure old or unused medications are disposed of properly is to take them in to a community pharmacy that participates in the Medications Return Program.
"Not a lot of people are aware of the program," says Wendy, a pharmacist and owner of two Pharmasave stores, one in West Vancouver and one in Ladner. "I find when people actually do find out about it they're delighted to have found the service."
More than 90 per cent of British Columbia's pharmacies take part in the Medications Return Program. They collect unused and expired medicines from their pharmacy patients, and hand them over to an organization that uses an environmentally friendly incineration process to dispose of them safely. ...more
Thursday, November 08, 2007
Leftover medicine? Pilot project in U.S. advises mixing it with cat litter
This is a new concept. Frankly, I like how our pharmacies accept medications back for disposal better.
From CBC News:
It's time to pooper-scoop your leftover medicine.
Mixing cough syrup, Vicodin or Lipitor with cat litter is the new advice in the United States on getting rid of unused medications. Preferably used cat litter.
It's a compromise, better for the environment than flushing - and one that renders dangerous medicines too yucky to try if children, pets or drug abusers stumble through the trash.
In Canada, the advice might differ as Health Canada tells people not to throw medications into the garbage or toilet, and individual municipalities have their own rules about what can and can't go into landfill sites. Usually, people are urged to take unused medicines back to pharmacies for proper disposal. ...more
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