[Pharmwaste] Long term care drug disposal

[Michele Berger]

When I started at my long term care pharmacy, all discontinued drugs were being flushed.  I immediately got in touch with a reverse distributor to have them disposed of properly.  For many months I have been encouraging the owner of our pharmacy to become more pro-active in discontinued drug disposal in our homes, including narcotics.  Yesterday a surveyor was at one of our homes and insisted that our policies be changed to state "All discontinued narcotics are to be flushed down the toilet".  After I have the owner so close to making the disposal a consultant pharmacist responsibility, I have been foiled again.  I understand it isn't easy to change a set idea but when options are there and you aren't allowed to use them it becomes extremely frustrating!  

Can anyone tell me where to find, in Florida law, that flushing meds down a toilet is more regulated than a DEA transfer?  Not to mention better for the environment!  

Michele Berger


      ____________________________________________________________________________________
Check out the hottest 2008 models today at Yahoo! Autos.
http://autos.yahoo.com/new_cars.html
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.dep.state.fl.us/pipermail/pharmwaste/attachments/20070914/243e2842/attachment.htm