Drug Take-Back at STLCOP

Contact: Bryan C. Daniels
Director, Public Relations
(314) 691-3130 – Cell
e-mail: bdaniels@stlcop.edu

St. Louis College of Pharmacy will Host Drug Take-Back Event

There will be two drop-off locations on campus – one for walk-ups and another for drive-ups.

ST. LOUIS (Oct. 25, 2011) – Nationwide, prescription drug abuse is a growing problem. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention calls it an epidemic.

According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), more than seven million Americans currently abuse prescription medications. The numbers related to teenage abuse are perhaps the most startling. One frequently cited statistic suggests that, each day, 2,700 teenagers try a prescription medicine to get high for the first time. And, a recent survey by the Partnership for a Drug-Free America found that one in five teens reported having abused prescription drugs to get high; one in seven reported doing so in the past 12 months.

To address prescription drug abuse, as well as medication safety and environmental issues related to the improper disposal of prescription medications, St. Louis College of Pharmacy (STLCOP), city of St. Louis Mayor Francis G. Slay, and the DEA have partnered to host the St. Louis Medication Disposal Program, a mediation take-back event on Thursday, Oct. 27 from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the STLCOP campus. The address is 4588 Parkview Place, St. Louis, Missouri 63110.

Anyone can drop off medications at the event, which is being promoted and advertised throughout the St. Louis region. It’s specifically geared toward providing people in the Central West End and employees of health care organizations in the area an opportunity to eliminate expired and unused prescriptions and over-the-counter medications from their homes.

There will be two drop-off locations on the STLCOP campus – one for walk-ups at the northwest entrance to Jones Hall (Parkview Place and S. Euclid Avenue) and another for drive-ups at the parking lot adjacent to Whelpley Hall (Parkview Place, one block west of Taylor Avenue).

The STLCOP take-back event is being held in conjunction with the DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day on Saturday, Oct. 29, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; it will include dozens of drop-off locations throughout the St. Louis region.

Along with drug abuse concerns, medication disposal has become increasingly important because studies indicate the storage of unused and expired medications can lead to accidental misuse and dangerous interactions – especially among seniors and to prescription drug abuse by teenagers. Also, recent studies show that pharmaceuticals enter our wastewater from a variety of sources, including through flushing of medications. Sewage treatment plants, septic systems, and drinking water infrastructures aren’t equipped to remove such contaminants.

To learn more about the proper disposal of medications, visit stlcop.edu. Click here for a map and directions to the STLCOP campus.

About St. Louis College of Pharmacy: Founded in 1864, St. Louis College of Pharmacy is one of the oldest and largest colleges of pharmacy in America. It integrates the liberal arts and sciences with a six-year professional curriculum leading to the Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) degree. The College admits students directly from high school and accepts transfer students from other colleges and universities. Approximately 1,265 students attend, and more than 72 percent of practicing pharmacists in the St. Louis metropolitan area are alumni.

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