Pin It
star_120The Coalition for Safe Medication Disposal reports continued success from its third Safe Medication Disposal Day last Saturday.  The collection days provide a simple, safe, and secure way for residents to dispose of unneeded household medications.

“I’m happy to report that the April 9th Safe Medication Disposal Event was a great success,” says Ed Gottlieb, pretreatment coordinator at the Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Facility.  “436 people participated   They dropped off about 838 pounds of medications, including more than 16,000 doses of controlled substances.  More than three-quarters of people who dropped off medications told us this was their first time at a collection event.  The addition of satellite collection sites in Newfield and Trumansburg made the event even more accessible.  And, with the help of many pharmacists and other health care professionals, we were able to collect far more data on what medications went unused than ever before.

“So many people had a hand in making this event a success,” Gottlieb continued.  “The members of the Coalition for Safe Medication Disposal; many volunteers who helped out at the event; Wegmans, CVS, Target, Gannett Health Services, and Cayuga Medical Center, which all sent pharmacists or pharmacy techs to do inventory; and our law enforcement partners:  the Tompkins County Sheriff’s Office, and Ithaca and Trumansburg Police Departments.  We appreciate the important support of local businesses that let us post banners or donated food for event volunteers:  Purity Ice Cream, Collegetown Bagels, GreenStar, Ithaca Bakery, and Papa John’s Pizza.”

The Coalition for Safe Medication Disposal is made up of representatives of many County departments, non-profit organizations, and private citizens, supported by many area pharmacies and businesses.  In total, the Coalition’s three events have collected more than one-and-a-half tons of unwanted pharmaceuticals so far.

The next Safe Medication Disposal event will take place this fall.  “In the meantime,” Gottlieb advises, “please don’t flush your unwanted medications!”

v7i15
Pin It