April 26th is DEA National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day

You know how dangerous it can be if the wrong hands discover an old, half-full prescription medicine bottle deep in a cabinet.  When my daughter was just a baby,  I read a story about a mom of 3 year old twins who was absolutely heartbroken because they got into her prescription drugs upstairs in her bathroom while she was downstairs making dinner. Both children took a couple pills and unfortunately only one made it through after heroic efforts by a nearby hospital.  This mom is now an advocate for telling parents the danger of these drugs and how to make sure they are kept safe out of little hands. Because of this story I have been talking to my daughter since she was very little about taking any medications.  Just the other day she announced to my husband and I that it is dangerous to take any medication without a parent around. I believe she gets the danger but as she gets older she will be exposed to other children getting into prescription drugs and bringing them to school.  We did talk about this in an age-appropriate discussion as she is in first grade but each year we will discuss this topic to make sure the channels of communication are open.

April 26, 2014: DEA National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day:

Did you know that more than 50% of prescription drug abusers 12 and older obtained those prescription drugs from family and friends for free? Further, the number of children under five seen in emergency rooms for medication poisoning related to prescription drug self-exposure has increased dramatically. The good news is that proper disposal of unused drugs is one of the most effective ways to protect your loved ones from misuse. To provide a convenient means of safe drug disposal and help curb abuse, the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy Foundation (NABP) and their AWAR_XE Consumer Protection Program has deemed April 26th the DEA National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day. Consumers can safely and legally dispose of any unneeded medications, anonymously and for free. The event is one of the few days of the year where residents can drop off expired or unused prescription medications without having to wonder whether they will be accepted—even controlled substances, such as ADHD drugs and prescription pain medications, are collected.  You can go to their website to find out where the drop-off locations are located in your city. I had a chance to do a video interview with the Executive Director of NABP, Dr. Carmen Catizone about the importance of keeping prescription drugs out of arms reach and disposing of them safely.

Interview conducted on April 3, 2014:

Check out my interview with Dr. Carmen Catizone who is helping to keep our kids safe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lk9TSI_qGtY&feature=youtu.be

This is our project to share for our dandelion moms Project Kindness for the month of April because this is such an important topic to discuss with your young children and teens. Please help share this post and make sure to keep talking to your kids about the dangers of taking prescription drugs not prescribed to them.

How else can you get involved?

·         Share information about the April 26 DEA Take-Back Day with your friends and family, Twitter followers, Facebook friends, and readers.

·         View and share the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy’s prescription drug abuse Public Service Announcement: https://c360m.com/online/AWARxE_NEW.html

·         “Like” AWAR_XE on Facebook to stay up to date, and encourage Dandelion Moms readers to do the same: www.facebook.com/AWARxE

Resources:

Locked medicine cabinets and boxes you can use to put your Prescriptions Drugs and out of harms way found here on Amazon.