Drugs are an important aspect of disease prevention and treatment. The process involved in getting rid of drugs that have expired or are no longer relevant is what is referred to as pharmaceutical disposal. At the household level, expired medication is usually discarded in the bin unless it is contraindicated by instructions on the label. On a large scale, guidelines are necessary to ensure correct and safe disposal. Such guidelines exist in California.
Some drugs may be given as donations by pharmaceutical companies during disasters as a form of aid. However, these may arrive beyond or close to expiry date. Sometimes they may be labelled in an unfamiliar language or they may be not be appropriate for needs. Also, the packages may be misused if they have a long shelf. Storage can also become a challenge if the drugs come in large quantities.
Guidelines are therefore very important for management of donation related drugs. Expiry date of these donation may within one year or more from the time of shipment to the donation. Giving out drugs whose shelf life is less than a year is only beneficial to destination areas that have good storage systems.
The choice of what technique to use in disposal should factor in the risk of exposing the public to environmental toxins. An ideal choice that minimizes environmental pollution is using incineration. Burning is done at very high temperatures of at least one thousand two hundred degrees Celsius. Alternative methods can be employed in low resource settings. Burning in the open is discouraged as it releases toxic gases into the air. Packaging material in form of paper (but not plastic)r can be burnt.
To ensure safety, all individuals taking part in the disposal procedure must wear gloves, masks, boots, overalls and other protective wear as deemed necessary. Masks are particularly appropriate when crushing tablets to avoid powder splashing into the eyes. Sorting should be done to identify drugs which are still in good to be used again and those that need discarding. Disposable ones are sorted out further according to what method is to be used for disposal.
A method known as land filling is common method of waste disposal in low resource settings. In this technique, waste is disposed off at a given site and left to accumulate. This however poses the risk of pollution to the environment. Apart from that, opportunists may hang around and reclaim harmful drugs such as narcotics. Disposers should therefore consider setting up security if their purpose of successful disposal is to be achieved.
Alternatively, expired medication can be collected in a container until it is approximately seventy five percent full after which additional harmless material fills up the container forming a block. This material may be in form of lime combined with cement or plain cement. Care should be taken that not potential explosives are present in the containers.
There are drugs that can simply be flushed down the toilet or sink. Some of this may include intravenous fluids and syrups. An exception to this are antibiotics that are not capable of being biodegraded as they interfere with the treatment process of the sewerage systems. Disposal of anticancer drugs into water systems is also contraindicated as it causes contamination and destruction of aquatic life.
Some drugs may be given as donations by pharmaceutical companies during disasters as a form of aid. However, these may arrive beyond or close to expiry date. Sometimes they may be labelled in an unfamiliar language or they may be not be appropriate for needs. Also, the packages may be misused if they have a long shelf. Storage can also become a challenge if the drugs come in large quantities.
Guidelines are therefore very important for management of donation related drugs. Expiry date of these donation may within one year or more from the time of shipment to the donation. Giving out drugs whose shelf life is less than a year is only beneficial to destination areas that have good storage systems.
The choice of what technique to use in disposal should factor in the risk of exposing the public to environmental toxins. An ideal choice that minimizes environmental pollution is using incineration. Burning is done at very high temperatures of at least one thousand two hundred degrees Celsius. Alternative methods can be employed in low resource settings. Burning in the open is discouraged as it releases toxic gases into the air. Packaging material in form of paper (but not plastic)r can be burnt.
To ensure safety, all individuals taking part in the disposal procedure must wear gloves, masks, boots, overalls and other protective wear as deemed necessary. Masks are particularly appropriate when crushing tablets to avoid powder splashing into the eyes. Sorting should be done to identify drugs which are still in good to be used again and those that need discarding. Disposable ones are sorted out further according to what method is to be used for disposal.
A method known as land filling is common method of waste disposal in low resource settings. In this technique, waste is disposed off at a given site and left to accumulate. This however poses the risk of pollution to the environment. Apart from that, opportunists may hang around and reclaim harmful drugs such as narcotics. Disposers should therefore consider setting up security if their purpose of successful disposal is to be achieved.
Alternatively, expired medication can be collected in a container until it is approximately seventy five percent full after which additional harmless material fills up the container forming a block. This material may be in form of lime combined with cement or plain cement. Care should be taken that not potential explosives are present in the containers.
There are drugs that can simply be flushed down the toilet or sink. Some of this may include intravenous fluids and syrups. An exception to this are antibiotics that are not capable of being biodegraded as they interfere with the treatment process of the sewerage systems. Disposal of anticancer drugs into water systems is also contraindicated as it causes contamination and destruction of aquatic life.
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