Mon Valley Hospital Offers Easy Disposal for Unused Drugs on September 12

Last Updated on Saturday, 29 August 2015 02:33

Monongahela Valley Hospital staff and the Carroll Township Police Department will again work together on National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, a convenient and safe way for residents to remove unused drugs from their medicine cabinets, on Saturday, Sept. 12, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Carroll Township Police Chief Paul Brand

The event will be held on the hospital campus at the circular driveway area outside of the Anthony M. Lombardi Education Conference Center. Participants can remain in their cars and hand unwanted drugs to the police officers through their windows.

Participants should remove any personal information from the bottles or packages of expired, unwanted or unused controlled, non-controlled or over-the-counter medications. Liquid products and creams in their containers will be accepted. Sharps and syringes will not be accepted due to the potential hazard posed by blood-borne diseases.
Donors remain anonymous and police will not request identification.

Afterwards, law enforcement officers will seal the boxes containing the collected medicine and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will weigh the boxes and safely dispose of the items.

Carroll Township Police Chief Paul Brand said that Drug Take Back Day has been a successful program that gets medication out of circulation so it cannot be stolen, misused or abused.

Chief Brand said that there are many times when people might start a prescription but their physician will tell them to stop or to try something else; he said those unused drugs need to be removed from homes.

To find other collection sites, search by zip code at www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov, scroll down to the “Got Drugs?” ad and then choose “locate a collection site near you” or call 1-800-882-9539.

Check the photo: Carroll Township Police Chief Paul Brand shows two bags of medication surrendered at Monongahela Valley Hospital during the last National Prescription Drug Take Back Day in 2014. The next collection will be held Saturday, Sept. 12, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.