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ICHP Illinois Council of Health-System Pharmacists

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Professional Practice » ICHP Position Statements »

DISPOSAL OF UNUSED AND EXPIRED PATIENT HOME MEDICATIONS

The Illinois Council of Health-System Pharmacists (ICHP) supports the recommendations of the American Pharmacists Association and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services regarding the handling of unused and/or expired patient home medications.

  1. Unused and expired medications should not be flushed into local sanitary waste treatment systems.
  2. Unused medications should be disposed of in a manner that protects children and pets from the potentially negative effects.  Until more formal systems can be put in place to handle the disposal of patients’ home medications, ICHP recommends that consumers:
    1. Check for approved state and local collection programs or with area hazardous waste facilities.
    2. Crush solid medications or dissolve them in water (this applies for liquid medications as well) and mix with kitty litter or sawdust (or any material that absorbs the dissolved medication and makes it less appealing for pets or children to eat), then place in a sealed plastic bag before tossing in the trash.
    3. Remove and destroy all identifying personal information from the medication container.
  3. Talk to the pharmacist.  As the medication expert on the healthcare team, the pharmacist is available to provide guidance on how to properly dispose of unused medications.


ICHP also supports:

  1. Development of programs for safe medication disposal.
  2. Government entities assuming the responsibility for implementation and associated costs of safe medication disposal programs.
  3. Development of educational programs for health professionals and consumers on the proper handling and disposal of pharmaceuticals and associated supplies and materials.


Revised 08/2010
 


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