[Pharmwaste] Group Looks to Change How Patients Dispose of Medicines

[Tenace, Laurie]

http://www.dailycal.org/sharticle.php?id=25451


Group Looks to Change How Patients Dispose of Medicines 
BY Jonathan Seclow
Contributing Writer
Thursday, July 19, 2007

 
 A local nonprofit organization aimed at increasing environmental awareness
in the medical field has launched a new program encouraging people to dispose
of unused and expired drugs at designated drop sites instead of simply
throwing them out. 
The Teleosis Institute, opened in 2004, is installing drop bins at its center
and pharmacies around the city in its latest campaign to reduce the effects
of medicines on the environment. 

"We want to encourage people to dispose of their expired and unused medicines
the right way, by taking them to our take-back sites," said Joel Kreisberg,
the institute's founder and executive director. "If you dump your medicine
down the toilet or just put them in the trash, they will eventually get into
the water and potentially harm aquatic life as well as people." 

The institute has already installed two take-back centers, one at its office
on Fifth Street and the second at the Pharmaca Integrative Pharmacy on Solano
Avenue. Kreisberg added that there are plans to set up 10 more sites as the
project develops. 

Once discarded drugs are picked up by the institute, they are incinerated, a
process that Kreisberg said is more environmentally friendly than dropping
them in landfills or flushing them down the toilet. 

In addition to installing the take-back sites, the institute is also pushing
for individuals to buy smaller quantities of medication in order to avoid
ending up with excess that could pollute the environment, Kreisberg said. 

Pharmaca representatives said they are glad to have a drop site at their
pharmacy, but added that even before working with the institute, they already
had unwanted or excess drugs incinerated 13 times a year. 

"The Teleosis Institute is providing a great service to our customers and we
really hope that they use it," said Christopher Turf, the director of
compounding and medical outreach for the pharmacy. "It is really important
that all medicines are properly disposed of so that we can avoid polluting
and harming the environment." 

The movement to reduce improper disposal of drugs, called the Green Pharmacy
Campaign, is one of a number of programs designed to help make the health
care industry environmentally sustainable, Kreisberg said. 

The institute also runs the Green Health Care Campaign, which Kresiberg said
is an educational program for health care professionals designed to inform
them to increase the environmental sustainability of their practice. 

While the institute does not offer any incentives to health professionals for
attending their educational programs, Kreisberg said they find that many
environmentally conscious professionals are eager to learn how to make their
practices more green. 

"A lot of the doctors who attend our program are environmentally friendly in
their personal life, and they are happy to find an opportunity to become more
environmentally friendly in their professional lives," Kreisberg said.
"Unfortunately, there aren't many programs to help health professionals
become environmentally sustainable." 

Laurie J. Tenace
Environmental Specialist
Florida Department of Environmental Protection
2600 Blair Stone Road, MS 4555
Tallahassee, Florida 32399-2400
PH: (850) 245-8759
FAX: (850) 245-8811
Laurie.Tenace at dep.state.fl.us 

Mercury web pages:
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/waste/categories/mercury/default.htm

Unwanted Medications web pages:
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/waste/categories/medications/default.htm




Please Note:  Florida has a very broad public records law.  Most written
communications to or from state officials regarding state business are public
records available to the public and media upon request.  Your e-mail is
communications and may therefore be subject to public disclosure.