National Drug Take-Back Day is occurring this Saturday, October 26th from 10am-2pm. This is a wonderful opportunity for all community members to safely dispose of any unneeded medications by locating and visiting a nearby collection site.
Medication misuse is an issue that can be avoided by actively choosing to follow proper disposal strategies. By doing so, you are able to decrease the likelihood of leftover medications falling into the hands of someone who might intentionally or unintentionally misuse them.
One of Generation Rx’s four key messages emphasizes the importance of teaching safe medication disposal practices to individuals of all ages. Community pharmacist, Raewyn Snodderly, PharmD, has been actively involved in championing Generation Rx values, as well as teaching safe medication disposal practices through a partnership between Terry’s Pharmacy South College, TN, and Community Health of East Tennessee (CHET). Through this platform, Raewyn has been able to collaborate with team members and pharmacy student interns to successfully implement Generation Rx programs into their local public schools and churches.
Raewyn and her team members advocate for individuals to take advantage of drug drop-boxes and national take-back days.
“Safe medication disposal plays a huge role in minimizing the ability for diversion [of medicine] to happen,” said Snodderly. “By having take-back programs, we have the opportunity to get medicine out of patients’ homes so we don’t have a patient accidentally take something and cause a medical incident.”
Snodderly noted that Campbell County does have drug drop-boxes located in sheriff and police departments as safe places for individuals to properly dispose of medications. A national database is available online to locate a drug drop-box near your neighborhood.
“I think that teaching kids early on that we don’t necessarily need to keep medicines lingering around is an important issue that needs to be addressed,” Snodderly shared.
National Drug Take-Back Day this Saturday provides an excellent means for individuals to engage in safe drug disposal. Prescription drugs can help us live longer and healthier lives, however, they have the potential to be dangerous when misused. Help decrease the ability for someone to misuse medication by participating in National Drug Take-Back Day this Saturday.
For more information regarding safe medication disposal practices, visit the Learn tab on our website or https://takebackday.dea.gov/.
