According to The National Association of Drug Diversion Investigators (NADDI), the home medicine cabinet is a significant source of prescription drug diversion.  That fact is at least part of the reason for the Drug Enforcement Agency to establish its National Drug Take-Back days.

The next National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day is Saturday, April 28, 2012. Please help myMatrixx spread the word in order to reduce the number of accumulated unwanted, unused prescription drugs, through safe disposal programs.

Per the DEA, Americans who participated in the DEA’s third National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day on October 29, 2011, turned in more than 377,086 pounds (188.5 tons) of unwanted or expired medications for safe and proper disposal at the 5,327 take-back sites that were available in all 50 states and U.S. territories. When the results of the three prior Take-Back Days are combined, the DEA and its state, local, and tribal law-enforcement and community partners have removed 995,185 pounds (498.5 tons) of medication from circulation in the past 13 months.

Please help myMatrixx communicate this date to the injured workers that we provide care to.  We all fear what might happen with all of the controlled substances that are processed through the Workers’ Compensation system.  This is one way to make sure at least a portion does not end up on the streets.

Be safe: take your discarded drugs to a National Take-Back Initiative collection site.
Photo credit: U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration

On Saturday, April 28, Cleveland-area governments are offering their communities a safe, convenient way to get rid of unwanted and expired prescription drugs. Local residents can take their leftover pills, liquids, syringes, inhalers and other medicines to a nearby collection site, where they will be accepted and disposed of, no questions asked.

Prescription drugs are an especially dangerous type of hazardous waste. They’re difficult to dispose of and dangerous to keep around the house.

• If discovered by children and pets, they can be poisonous, and the results can be fatal.
• If flushed into the sewer system, they contaminate the water supply, giving your neighbors unsuspected doses of narcotics, hormones, antibiotics and steroids.
• If tossed into the trash, they may end up in the hands of scavengers who will resell them, or they will end up in the landfill as toxic waste that contaminates groundwater.

In cooperation with the Drug Enforcement Agency’s National Take Back Initiative (NTBI), local communities have established collection sites throughout the region. (The DEA continues to add collection sites, so if you don’t find a convenient site in the lists that follow, check the NTBI search page.)

• Ashtabula County sites
• Cuyahoga County sites (Cleveland east side)
• Cuyahoga County sites (Cleveland west side)
• Cuyahoga County sites (suburban)
• Geauga County sites
• Lake County sites

To view a map of a collection site, click on the site’s address.

Ashtabula County

• Conneaut: University Hospital Conneaut Medical Center, 158 W. Main Road
• Geneva: University Hospital Geneva Medical Center, 870 W. Main Street
• Jefferson: Jefferson Emergency Rescue District, 11 South Market Street

Cuyahoga County/Cleveland East Side

• Euclid Hospital, 18901 Lake Shore Boulevard
• Cleveland Division of Police, 3rd District, 10700 Chester Avenue
• Cleveland Division of Police, 4th District, 9333 Kinsman Road
• Cleveland Division of Police, 5th District, 881 East 152nd Street

Cuyahoga County/Cleveland West Side

• Lutheran Hospital, 730 West 25th Street
• Cleveland Division of Police, 2nd District, 3841 Fulton Road
• Cleveland Division of Police, 1st district, 3895 West 130th Street
• Discount Drug Mart (parking lot), 17815 Puritas Road
• Cuyahoga County Board of Health, 5550 Venture Drive

Cuyahoga County/Suburban

• Bay Village: Bay Village Police Department, 28000 Wolf Road
• Beachwood: Beachwood Fire Department, 2655 Richmond Road
• Bedford: University Hospital Bedford Medical Center, 44 Blaine Avenue
• Brecksville: Public Square, corner of Route 21 (Brecksville Road) and Route 82 (Royalton Road)
• Brook Park: North Park Retirement Community, 14801 Holland Road
• Cuyahoga Heights: NE Ohio Regional Sewer District Environmental & Maintenance Servics Center, 4747 East 49th Street
• Fairview Park: Fairview Park Police Department, 20777 Lorain Road
• Garfield Heights: Marymount Hospital, 2300 McCracken Road
• Gates Mills: Gates Mills Police Department, 1470 Chagrin River Road
• Highland Heights: Highland Heights Police Department, 5827 Highland Road
• Independence: Independence Police Department, 6800 Brecksville Road
• Lakewood: Lakewood Hospital, 14519 Detroit Avenue
• Lakewood: Lakewood Police Department, 12650 Detroit Avenue
• Maple Heights: Discount Drug Mart (parking lot), 6148 Dunham Road
• Mayfield Heights: Mayfield Heights Police Department, 6154 Mayfield Road
• Mayfield Village: Mayfield Village Police Department, 620 SOM Center Road
• Middleburg Heights: Sanford Brown College, 17535 Rosbough Drive
• Newburgh Heights: Washington Park Horticultural School/Center (parking lot), 3875 Washington Park Boulevard
• North Olmsted: North Olmsted Police Department, 27243 Lorain Road
• North Royalton: Discount Drug Mart (parking lot), 5500 Wallings Road
• Olmsted Falls: Olmsted Falls Police Department, 26100 Bagley Road
• Orange Village: Orange Village Police Department, 4600 Lander Road
• Parma: Parma Senior Center, 7001 West Ridgewood Avenue
• Pepper Pike: Pepper Pike Police Department, 28000 Shaker Boulevard
• Rocky River: Rocky River Police Department, 21012 Hilliard Boulevard
• Solon: Solon Senior Centr, 35000 Portz Parkway
• Strongsville: Discount Drug Mart (parking lot), 13919 Prospect Road
• Strongsville: Strongsville Police Department, 18688 Royalton Road
• Westlake: Westlake Police Department, 273 Hilliard Boulevard

Geauga County

• Chardon: Geauga County Sheriff’s Office (parking lot), 12450 Merritt Road

Lake County

• Willoughby Hills: Willoughby Hills Fire Department, 35405 Chardon Road
• Willowick: Willowick Police Department, 30435 Lake Shore Boulevard

For more information about the National Take-Back Initiative, see the U.S. Department of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration website. A complete list of collection sites nationwide is available through the NTBI search page.

Unused drugs are hazardous waste: keep them out of the wrong hands … keep them out of our water … keep them out of the landfill.

Photo courtesy of the Drug Enforcement Administration.

The event allows people to bring unwanted or unused prescription drugs they have accumulated to drop-off points, knowing the drugs will be disposed of in a safe and environmentally appropriate way.

The DEA’s last event, on Oct. 29, 2011, collected more than 377,086 pounds of prescription drugs from more than 5,000 participating locations in the U.S.

Participating locations are Valleywide. To find a location near you, visit the Collection Site Locator.

If you are unable to make it to the Prescription Drug Take-Back Day, the Food and Drug Administration offers suggestions for safe disposal of drugs:

• Take them out of their original containers and mix them with an undesirable substance, like used coffee grounds or kitty litter.
• Put them in a sealable bag or other container so they don’t leak.
• Before throwing away the medicine container, make sure all the information is scratched off, to protect your identity.
• If you are unsure about anything, call your pharmacist for advice.

— Erin Saltzman

Learn more

Time to clean out the medicine cabinet!

For the fourth time in two years, the Drug Enforcement Administration will hold a National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day.

The program disposes of medication at over 5,300 sites operated by over 4,000 state and local law enforcement agencies. It has disposed of almost 500 tons of medication so far.

Prescription drugs are abused by more Americans than those that use cocaine, hallucinogens and heroin put together, says the National Survey on Drug Use and Health.

The program was initially set up by the DEA to prevent old medicine from falling into unauthorized hands as well as to keep it from being thrown away and seeping into water supplies.

You can find a nearby collection site here.

Visiting prescribers day in and day out with information about drug shortages, better bases, and problem solving can take a lot out of a marketer. But it can also take a lot out of a prescriber. Sometimes it’s best to go in by giving instead of asking and the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day is a perfect time to give back.

This year, the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day is taking place on Saturday April 28 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. all across the United States. Make up a simple on sheet page that explains what the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day is. How it’s a great opportunity to get rid of any expired or unused samples that physicians may have received from drug reps. Also mention that this is a great opportunity to educate patients on the prescribers’ blog, Facebook page or Twitter account. Maybe include some information on why it’s important to dispose of medications properly (both environmental and for the safety of children and teens.) Of course make sure your logo and contact information is listed as well and let them know if they have any questions about compounds to feel free to contact your pharmacist.

There are marketing opportunities all around and your competition is choosing the obvious. Here’s a challenge to find something to give that isn’t laden with calories and is something that actually benefits not just the physician but patients and the community as a whole. For more on giving to get, we recommend reading The Go-Giver by Bob Burg & John David Mann. To learn more about the National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day and to see a list of locations visit us at Pharmacy Marketing Quarterly.

Authorities believe cleaning out the medicine cabinet is the only safe option. One study shows the majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends.

“In 2009, deaths from prescription drug abuse outstripped deaths from drunk driving,” said Dr. Kerry Broderick with Denver Health Medical Center.
[worldnow id=6387755 width=420 height=278 type=video]

“A student took a bottle of prescription meds out of their parents medicine cabinet, brought it to school and just started handing the pills out to all their classmates,” said Denver Health Chief Paramedic Scott Bookman.

John Hunter Hauck was a sophomore at Colorado State University when his life ended at an off campus house.

“May 3, 2010 he overdosed on Oxycontin and alcohol,” said John’s father former Boulder District Attorney Alex Hunter.

He said the danger started in the family home.

“The bottom line is that I think he got my drugs that were on the counter and were not in a safe place,” said Hunter.

Hunter calls prescription drug abuse an epidemic. He joined law enforcement officials in promoting the third National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day.

RELATED STORY: Prescription Take Back Events A Success

Last year, more than seven tons of unused drugs were collected in Colorado. With 101 drop off sites this Saturday, authorities hope to collect and destroy even more. The Take Back is from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“People need to treat these drugs like Oxycontin like loaded guns,” said Hunter.

He shared his story in hopes that nobody else will have to share his sorrow.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: Find a drop off location near you at deadiversion.usdoj.gov

Pottstown, Pa. (October 20, 2011) – The Tri-County Community Network (TCN), a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving health, social and environmental conditions in Western Montgomery, Northern Chester and Eastern Berks counties, is renewing support this month for efforts by area law enforcement agencies to collect unused prescription drugs, taking them out of the hands of youth and helping to protect public water supplies, as part of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) National Prescription Drug Take Back Day.

Casey Jones, a member of TCN’s Education & Advocacy Team and the C.A.R.E. committee, said the organization is promoting positive response by its members and their communities to the 3^rd National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, to be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, October 29, at various area locations.

Law enforcement agencies will be supervising free, no-questions-asked collection of unused prescription drugs, often found accumulating in home medicine cabinets and drawers, at several community locations, including designated supermarkets and pharmacies.

Collection sites within the Greater Pottstown area include:

• Pottstown – Giant Food Store, 86 Glocker Way, Pottstown (North Coventry Police) and Lower Pottsgrove Police Department, 2199 Buchert Road
• Birdsboro – Birdsboro Pharmacy Parking Lot, 310 West Main Street
• Gilbertsville – Giant Markets, 173 Holly Road (Douglass Township Police)
• Phoenixville – Borough Hall, 140 Church Street, and Giant Food Store at 700 Nutt Road
• Schwenksville – Pennsylvania State Police – Skippack Barracks, 2047-C Bridge Road
• Zieglerville – Lower Frederick Township Police, 53 Spring Mount Road
• Oaks – Upper Providence Township Police, 286 Black Rock Road

Individuals also may drop off prescription drugs at other locations found at the DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take Back website at www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback.

Jones, a families advocate who undertakes community outreach as part of the Transformation Initiative for Building Healthy Communities Through Healthy Families, said the national collection program complements a significant number of TCN’s own collaborative initiatives in the areas of health, education, environmental awareness, youth and family development, assistance to caregivers, and homelessness.

“Prescription drugs have become a new drug of choice for youth,” he said, noting that national survey results from the DEA found one in seven teens admitting to abusing prescription drugs to get high during the past year, with 60 percent of teens who have abused prescription pain relievers having done so before the age of 15.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has warned that unused prescriptions, poured down the drain or flushed down the toilet, may enter streams and rivers and, ultimately, end up in municipal water supplies.

In addition to promoting proper disposal of unused prescription drugs, TCN is seeking to educate the public, including children, about the dangers associated with un-prescribed use of medicines.  It will be providing posters and other materials to its members and the public for distribution to and education of individuals, employees and clients.

During the last National Prescription Drug Take Back in April 2011, over a half ton of unused prescription drugs were collected in both Montgomery and Chester counties, reflecting over 12.5% of the total state-wide collection total.

Members of the public who would like to promote this activity with posters or handbills, that also can be used as church bulletin inserts, may obtain them from TCN at info@tcnetwork.org.

Additional information about the National Prescription Drug Take Back Day initiative, along with the searchable database of collection sites in neighboring areas and nationally, is available at www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback.

Since medicine doesn’t lose potency just because it’s expired, flushing them away doesn’t mean they’re gone. Recent studies have linked water contamination via prescription disposal with abnormalities in aquatic species like fish and octopus.

So the saying, “There must be something in the water” might actually ring true. Scary, right?

On Saturday, Oct. 29^th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., the federal Drug Enforcement Agency will hold its third National Prescription Drug Take Back Day. It’s your last chance in 2011 to dispose of expired, over-the-counter or prescription pills and capsules in an anonymous, environmentally safe way. There are drop-off sites all over our great state.

On the last Take-Back Day on April 30, the DEA collected 376,593 pounds of pills and capsules across 5,361 collection sites.

Could your medicine cabinet use a little breathing room?

Photo credit: Mr. T in DC

Anyone in the city can bring in prescription drugs to the Bryant Street Station, no questions asked, and deposit them for destruction.

KCBS’ Anna Duckworth Reports: [audio_link url="http://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/nyc.podcast.play.it/media/d0/d0/d0/dX/dJ/dN/dI/XJNI_4.MP3" name="Local Law Enforcement Accepting Expired Prescription Drugs" artist="KCBS’ Anna Duckworth"]

San Francisco Sgt. Steven Smalley explained even drugs thrown in the trash can end up contaminating the environment.

Smalley said the program can prevent people from trying to poison themselves and keeps it out of the hands of people that shouldn’t be taking the drugs.

A similar take back last year netted more than 242,000 pounds of prescription drugs.

A National Survey on drug use and health done in 2009, found more Americans abuse prescription drugs than cocaine, hallucinogens and heroin combined.

Everything collected on Saturday will be incinerated according to police.

(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services may have contributed to this report.)

The U.S. Department of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration urges you to properly dispose of pills.

Now is a great time to look in your medicine cabinet, pantry, vitamin drawer, office drawer or any other place you may store “pills.” Pills includes prescription drugs as well as vitamins. Pull out pills that are expired or you no longer take. Place them in a plastic grocery bag (recycling) and deliver them to a National Take Back Initiative Collection Site.

Find a location near you:
http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback/index.html

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The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and its national and community partners will give the public another opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused, and unwanted prescription drugs.  On Saturday, April 30th, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. local time, DEA and its partners will hold their second National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day at sites nationwide.  The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.

More information and collection sites can be found at National Take Back Initiative.

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On Saturday, April 30th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., the DEA is partnering with local communities for their second National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day at sites all around the state.

The service is free and anonymous, no questions asked.

Last September, Americans turned in over 242,000 pounds, 121 tons, of prescription drugs at nearly 4,100 sites operated by more than 3,000 of the DEA’s state and local law enforcement partners. In Florida, 4 ½ tons of prescription drugs were collected from over 140 sites. The collected drugs were safely disposed at the following four sites in Florida: Miami-Fort Lauderdale area – 1 ½ tons, Orlando – 1 ½ tons, Tampa – ½ ton, and Tallahassee – 1 ton.

The DEA hopes to collect even more this spring by opening the event to long term care facilities.

This initiative addresses a vital public safety and public health issue. Medicines that remain in home cabinets are highly susceptible to diversion, misuse, and abuse. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high — more Americans currently abuse prescription drugs than the number of those using cocaine, hallucinogens, and heroin combined, according to the 2009 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Studies show that a majority of abused prescription drugs are obtained from family and friends, including from the home medicine cabinet.

“In Florida, seven people are dying every day from prescription drug abuse”, said DEA Miami Special Agent in Charge Mark R. Trouville. “Ridding medicine cabinets of expired, unused, and unwanted drugs is as important a home safety activity as changing batteries in smoke detectors.”

Floridians can find local collections sites by visiting www.justice.gov/dea, clicking on “Got Drugs?”, and entering their zip code.

• Rob Wilson
• Izzazu International Salon, Spa & Serata
• Drug Enforcement Agency’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day
• Pa. Resources Council Or Call (412)-488-7452 Regarding The Next Pharmeceutical Collection Day April 30 At Mall At Robinson.
• Dr. Will Clower
• The Little Black Dress Way Of Living

Today’s Little Black Dresses Came From Catherina, Located At 618 Allegheny River Boulevard In Oakmont. 412-828-1995

It was interesting to watch and listen to the people who came by to drop off their unwanted medications at the Police Department.  For the four hours we were open for collections we had a fairly steady stream of folks coming by, often with grocery bags full of prescriptions to get rid of.  For the most part, they were some of our more seasoned residents, but not all.  What struck me the most was that even though this was supposed to be an anonymous, no questions asked way for people to clean out their medicine cabinets, most of the people who came by seemed to want to give us at least some information.  Several of the people appeared a bit surprised when we didn’t ask for their names or what kinds of medication they were dropping off.  “That’s it?” was a common phrase that morning when they handed the officer their bag and he simply said “Thank you.”

I can’t help but imagine what stories there are behind each and every one of those who came by.  I chuckled when one of the ladies, who dropped of a significantly sized bag of medications, walked up to the counter, smiled, and said “Hello, just so you know I’m not a drug dealer.”  The officer chuckled too, and reassured her he didn’t think she was.  The lady then began to share a story about her husband who had recently passed and how he had to take a lot of medications during the end of his life.  She didn’t go into a lot of detail, but you could tell she had a lot of memories to share.

There were other folks like her, and although we weren’t able to sit and talk with each and every one, we were glad we could at least provide a small service for them.  I heard several people say, “I’ve had these around for years and just didn’t know what to do with them.” Nearly everybody said “thanks for doing this, it’s a great service.”  We too say thank you.  Thanks for taking the extra step and the time out of your day to do something that will help keep these old medications out of the wrong hands.

There’s a good reason we’re doing this.  Having a bunch of prescription medications lying around people’s homes is a leading cause of accidental poisoning, overdose, and abuse.  In fact, some pharmaceutical drugs taken without a doctor’s prescription are just as dangerous as taking illicit drugs.  Here are some stats for you:

• According to the 2008 National Survey on Drug Use and Health the non-medical use of prescription drugs ranks second only to marijuana as the most prevalent category of drug abuse in the U.S.
• That same survey found more Americans currently abuse prescription drugs than the number of those abusing cocaine, hallucinogens, and heroin combined.
• The 2009 Monitoring the Future Survey found one in ten 12th graders use the narcotic Vicodin for non-medical purposes.
• The 2008 Partnership Attitude Tracking Survey showed the majority of teenagers using prescription drugs got them from family and friends, including from their home medicine cabinets.

The best part about this program is you don’t have to pay anything to participate.  Simply stop in at a participating location, put your unwanted medications in the box, and walk out.  You’re done.  There are some things we cannot accept.  See a full list of those items and the complete list of participating locations here.