Today I was contacted by a medical assistant colleague who is taking my Basics of Pharmacology course at UniversalClass.com to brush up on her pharmacology knowledge.
In her email she states that her medical office is having a problem with disposing of their expired medication samples. They used to dispose of the out-dated medications by flushing them down the toilet, but now they received a letter from the hospital and the county informing them that flushing is no longer allowed; something about the medications being found in the water supply.The office found out that only very few pharmaceutical reps are willing to take the expired medications back and the local pharmacies will only take back "controlled" medications. The medical assistant writes, that they feel that they have no other choice, but to limit the amount of samples they accept from the reps to avoid winding up with expired samples. They also try to make sure that the samples the reps leave on their shelves will not expire too soon, i.e. will be good for about one year.
Does anyone have suggestions, especially on disposal? Please add your comments!!!
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5 comments:
What about putting them in sharps containers?? That way they are sealed and marked biohazard??
Tracy, CMA/RMA/CNA
I was informed by the biohazard team that you can not put expired drugs in the sharps container. They are incinerated and may cause hazardous fumes.
See Florida's suggestion.
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/waste/quick_topics/publications/shw/meds/DEPMedicationDisposalFlyer111706Final.pdf
Medical disposal and waste have become a concern for the healthcare industry because lax regulations in the US may contribute to the spread of infections and diseases. Here is a useful resource listing Top 35 Medical Waste and Disposal Blogs for further research:
Top 35 Medical Waste and Disposal Blogs
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