This morning as I was checking my work inbox, I received a most timely E-mail message from one of our health system partner “champions”:
“The world is a bit crazy right now, but we are holding up. I had a friend approach me this week and ask for a DisposeRx packet because he recently had a surgery and had left over pain pills. All three of his sons came home from college early, and he was worried about the meds in his cabinet. I gladly gave him DisposeRx, and he took care of business to protect his family during this period of social distancing.”
The COVID-19 pandemic is upon us, which is forcing us to take precautions such as social distancing, self-isolation and quarantining—all of which will mean that we are spending more time at home with family and/or significant others.
I hear from and see messages on social media of friends who are taking this time to clean out furniture drawers, pantries and cabinets. At our home, we have been busy cleaning out closets and attics.
This also is an opportune time to go through your medicine cabinet to see what leftover or expired medications you might have that could pose danger if the drugs got into the wrong hands—either those of a young child or college student as was the worry outlined in the above E-mail message.
Earlier today, my son and his wife brought over medications they found when they moved into their home recently. We disposed of them quickly and conveniently using DisposeRx packets thereby mitigating potential risks.
National Clean Out Your Medicine Cabinet Day
If you don’t clean out your medicine cabinet in the next few days or weeks while you are sequestered, we encourage you to do so on Friday, April 17—National Clean Out Your Medicine Cabinet Day.
DisposeRx established this special day in 2019 as a way to encourage people to practice Safe Medication Management by safely storing and disposing of their medications. The idea was that people would clean out their medicine cabinets in time for the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) National Prescription Drug Take Back Day scheduled in April and October annually.
Unfortunately, the COVID-19 public health crisis forced the cancellation of this year’s spring event.
Nevertheless, we encourage you to take the time to clean out your medicine cabinet, pantries, nightstands, etc.—any place within your home where you might store prescriptions. And don’t forget about pet medications!
Learn more about National Clean Out Your Medicine Cabinet Day by visiting our website, and share your medication disposal stories with us via social media.