Naval Medical Center Portsmouth (NMCP) kicked off its Drug Take Back Program June 7, an initiative that is sponsored locally by the Pharmacy Department and the command Drug and Alcohol Program advisor (DAPA).

The program offers drop boxes and mail-back envelopes so beneficiaries can dispose of unused, unneeded and expired prescription and over-the-counter medications.

By encouraging the proper disposal of these medications, the program seeks to diminish the amount of readily available surplus prescription drugs that have the potential to be misused or abused by service members and their family and friends. The program also gives beneficiaries an environmentally responsible way to dispose of medications.

"Before now, physically, the hospital could not (take medications for disposal), so this is really exciting we're now at the level that we can," said Capt. Matt Case, NMCP's executive officer, during the drop box unveiling ceremony at NMCP. "Prescription abuse counts for one death every 19 minutes in America, and that's just unacceptable. What we can do to help eliminate those risks is take drugs that are unnecessary out of the system. We also don't need antibiotics and psychotropic drugs in our fish, so that's another reason why this is an important day."

"This has been an important initiative that we have been working on for nearly a year to get in place," said Lt. Cmdr. Kathleen Smith, NMCP's Inpatient Pharmacy division officer, during the ceremony. "It's also a critical element to the DAPA push to return unused medications to prevent them from being abused or misused."

The Drug Take Back Program is one of many tactics the Navy is employing to reduce prescription drug abuse in service members and beneficiaries. Through the availability of the drop boxes and mail-back envelopes, the Navy hopes to offer a more convenient, accessible and user-friendly means of drug disposal and decrease the number of Sailors discharged for prescription drug misuse.

The Military Health System (MHS) program coincides with the efforts of the Navy Alcohol and Drug Prevention (NADAP) office, which together are committed to supporting the nation's efforts to reduce opioid abuse.

"Active-duty Sailors who take medications that are not prescribed to them fall under the zero-tolerance policy and can potentially be separated from active-duty service for improperly taking or abusing prescription drugs or taking another Sailor's medication or another family member's medications," said Lt. Cmdr. Darcey Reilly-Endicott, NMCP's command Drug and Alcohol Program advisor.

"NADAP's Prescription for Discharge campaign was launched in January 2016 and is aimed at having Sailors and Marines take their medications properly, and making sure they are not sharing their medications with other active-duty service members and making sure they are disposing of them in a proper manner so they aren't creating a problem within the Navy family."

Before the Drug Take Back Program, Smith said there were limited choices for beneficiaries to dispose of medications because of environmental restrictions and collection restrictions from the Drug Enforcement Administration to prevent diversion. Some options included permanent drug take back locations, but those locations may not be convenient, or to wait for a drug take back event. Another option was to mix medications with coffee grounds or kitty litter and throw them in the trash.

"Now that we have so many viable options," Smith said, "I would encourage all of our staff to educate any patient who has medication they need to dispose of and have them use one of the options that works best for them."

The four drop boxes are located adjacent to the pharmacies at NMCP and the branch health clinics (BHCs) at Naval Station Norfolk, Joint Expeditionary Base-Little Creek and Naval Air Station Oceana. The NMCP box is available 24 hours a day, seven days per week, while the BHC boxes are available during that locations pharmacy hours.

The drop boxes are designed similar to U.S. Postal Service mail boxes and can accept most medications. Acceptable items for disposal are legal prescription or over-the-counter drugs. These include pills, tablets, capsules, ointments, creams, lotions, powders and liquid medicines no more than four ounces. Liquid medicines must be placed in a sealable plastic bag before being placed in the drop box. All medication should have prescription labels removed from the container before placing in the drop box.

Items that cannot be turned in are liquid medications that exceed four ounces, illegal drugs or schedule 1 drugs, and hazardous materials, such as sharps containers (with needles), batteries, or propellants on an inhaler. The drug component can be taken off the inhaler and turned in, but the aerosol container cannot be.

For detailed information about what can and cannot go into the drop box, information is posted on the top of each box. Pharmacy staff can also answer questions about use of the drop box or the mail-back envelopes.

Mail-back envelopes can be provided to beneficiaries at all 11 NMCP pharmacy locations in Hampton Roads. This includes NMCP, all branch health clinics, TRICARE Prime clinics, and the Scott Center Annex pharmacy. A pharmacy technician will provide an envelope to any beneficiary who requests one after the technician educates the beneficiary about medication disposal.

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