Safe Medication Disposal | Importance & Methods
Safe Medication Disposal FAQ
Where can I dispose of unwanted medicines?
Your local community pharmacy provides a free and convenient way to dispose of your unwanted medicines responsibly. Prescription medicines, over-the-counter medicines, herbal or complementary supplements, gels, liquids, creams and pet medicines can all be returned to your community pharmacy for free, safe disposal.
How do you dispose of expired medicines?
Take expired medicines to a pharmacy for safe disposal. Throwing away unwanted medicines in the bin or by flushing down the toilet is dangerous to others, and harmful to the environment. What is an out-of-date medicine? What do I do if I have been taking expired medicines? What is an out-of-date medicine? All medications have an expiry date.
What is the National return & disposal of unwanted Medicines program?
The National Return and Disposal of Unwanted Medicines Program provides a free and safe method for the disposal of unwanted and expired medicines. This stops drugs being dumped in landfill and waterways. An audit showed that over 600 tonnes of medicines are returned through the program.
Should medicines be disposed of as general waste?
To prevent environmental contamination, medicines must not be disposed of as general waste. They must not be poured down a sink, flushed down a toilet, or sent to landfill as they persist for a long time in the environment and in water supplies.
How do I dispose of unwanted medicines?
For more information, visit our page on safe disposal of unwanted medicines. So set a reminder to do a stocktake of your medicine cabinet in the next fortnight. Say goodbye to unwanted medicines, and you'll do Marie Kondo proud. If you have any unwanted medicines, you can safely dispose of them at your local pharmacy.
Where can I drop off unwanted medicines?
You can drop your unwanted medicines off at any participating pharmacy at no cost to you or the pharmacy. The program disposes of the medicines, mostly through high-temperature incineration. The program supports the quality use of medicines by collecting, transporting and disposing of unwanted medicines in a timely and environmentally safe way.
Safe Medication Disposal References
If you want to know more about Safe Medication Disposal, consider exploring links below:
What Is Safe Medication Disposal
- https://www.tga.gov.au/safe-disposal-unwanted-medicines
- https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/national-return-and-disposal-of-unwanted-medicines-program-natrum
- https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/out-of-date-medicines
- https://www.nps.org.au/assets/8bd8094d1d77b654-d69ddca55c92-Safe-disposal-of-prescribed-medicines.pdf
- https://australianprescriber.tg.org.au/articles/safe-disposal-of-prescribed-medicines.html
- https://www.health.wa.gov.au/Articles/A_E/Disposal-of-medicines
- https://www.health.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0022/1113097/fs-disposal-destruction-medicine-waste.pdf
- https://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/standards/nsqhs-standards/medication-safety-standard
- https://www.fda.gov/drugs/safe-disposal-medicines/disposal-unused-medicines-what-you-should-know