Utahns urged to get rid of unused drugs at approved fundraising sessions as part of the nationwide business recovery day

SALT LAKE CITY – As part of efforts to reduce opioid addiction, federal and state officials encourage Utahns to get rid of expired or unused medications on Saturday's National Prescription Drug Takeover Day .

Forty-five additional prescription drug deposit sites will be made available in Utah, in addition to 133 year-round venues, as part of a blitz organized by the United States. US Drug Enforcement Administration to urge citizens to get rid of their unused pills. , among other things, serve as fodder for addictions to painkillers.

Utah health authorities are demanding that old prescription drugs be thrown into the drop-off sites, as flushing them to the bathroom can be harmful to the environment, and trash-thrown pills may still be within reach. 'a drug addict.

"People know that you have to look in the trash cans, especially if they are still intact in a bottle bearing a label indicating oxycodone," said Angela Stander, coordinator of drug overdose prevention. from the State Department of Health.

She added that elimination at home should only be considered when important precautions are taken, such as the inclusion of drugs containing an undesirable item, such as a worn-out diaper, and should never be thrown into the bottle in which they were stored.

Other drop-off sites available on Saturday include grocery stores, town halls, police departments and district offices. Many police departments in Utah also offer home stations all year round.

The biannual push for mass drug reductions is aimed at raising awareness of the importance of not leaving unused tablets at home, said Diana Graalum, MedSavvy's director of clinical pharmacy, a consumer guide. of pharmaceuticals based in Oregon.

"What we have, it is the proof that drugs held in this way were used by family or friends … maybe not to the knowledge of the person who had this medicine in their closet", has declared Graalum to the Deseret newspaper.

In fact, 2014 data from the Utah Department of Health show that 74% of Utahns "who abuse opioids or abuse them" reported having passed them through a member. from their family or from a friend, "said Stander.

Public health officials are trying to reduce the excessive number of opioid prescriptions, she added, but patients must play a role in being responsible for what they bring home. them.

"Part of this solution to the problem of over-prescription is to eliminate them," Stander said about unused opioids.

In addition to endangering drug addicts, unused opioids sitting at home at home may pose a risk to ignorant children or curious teenagers, said Graalum.

Graalum added that non-prescription non-prescription drugs also present unanticipated hazards. For example, an expired blood pressure or heart medication can mislead a patient about what pills he or she has already taken or not, she said.

Graalum said that the tendency of people to preserve old medicines could stem from the desire to "not throw things in the trash", but that "what in other situations could be a good habit" is actually dangerous with drugs.

Stander said some preferred to keep their medications unused, "fearing rainy days," but "fear (of) … addiction and overdose should be greater."

"We know statistically that the risk is greater than falling back into pain and not having something (for that)," she said.

Lisa Nichols, Executive Director of Community Health at Intermountain Healthcare, said that for opioids that need to be kept at home because of their active use, it is best to prevent theft by keeping them in a locked filing cabinet and keeping an inventory of the amount of medicine on hand. .

Intermountain, which has created 25 year-round depots in state pharmacies and 14 others with various partners, has collected 22,000 pounds of prescription drugs filed over the last 18 months, a said Nichols.

In Utah, Nichols said, "I think there is really a growing awareness of the danger of prescription opioids and the need to safely store and dispose of prescription drugs."

The US Drug Enforcement Administration is coordinating National Prescription Drug Takeover Day, which runs from April to October, as part of its broader Strategy 360 initiative – a campaign to combat drug dependence. opioids with a focus on "repression, diversion and community awareness". According to the agency, 6.2 million Americans made improper use of prescription drugs in 2016.

"We had a substantial amount of pills that were reported" on the planned withdrawal days, said Ciara Gregovich, community outreach coordinator for the Drug Enforcement Administration.

Utah's governor, Spencer Cox, announced this month that there had been 237 prescription overdose deaths in that state in 2017, though that number has declined for three consecutive years.

In addition, there were 159 heroin-related fatal overdose deaths in Utah in 2017, the first decrease in the number of such deaths in the state for seven years . Utah was one of nine states where the number of overdose deaths from opioids fell between 2016 and 2017.

Those wishing to locate a prescription drug drop-off point, that it is available all year or only next Saturday, can do it at www.utahtakeback.org/collection .php.

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Ben Lockhart