MEDICATION DISPOSAL;

Due to irresponsible and unsafe methods of drug disposal employedby consumers pharmaceutical waste enters the ecosystem, ultimately having a detrimentaleffect on both human health and environment. Objectives: The purpose of the study is tomeasure attitude and practice of local community in Karachi, Pakistan regarding safe disposalof unwanted medicines and assess willingness of participants to take part in a medicationtake-back program. Study Design: A two-phase observational study was conducted usingconvenience sampling. Period: January to February, 2016. Methodology: In Phase I (n = 200)students enrolled in various health sciences institutions in the study were asked to take part inthe survey. In Phase II(n = 300) household consumers were contacted by telephone and socialmedia. Results: Participants (response rate 84.4%) were given a questionnaire to explore theirattitudes towards medicine disposal. More than half of the consumers surveyed reported storingunused/expired medications in their homes, and majority threw away unwanted medicine in thegarbage. The most common reason was unawareness of expiry date (32.7%). Only 12.32%reported returning medication to a pharmacy for disposal. Majority of the consumers had neverreceived advice about medication disposal by a health care provider but were aware of thepossible negative consequences and were willing to participate in national pharmacy take-backprograms if implemented by the government. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that effectivecommunication and established protocols will promote appropriate disposal practices. Publicservices in Pakistan, and especially pharmacies, must play a more proactive role in this regard.