GRMC, GPD partner for National Drug Take Back Day News Staff Tue, 04/16/2024 - 1:02 pm
- (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO | DEA) Graham Regional Medical Center and Graham Police Department have joined the Drug Enforcement Administration national effort to help the public safely dispose of drugs, needles and syringes for National Drug Take Back Day. The local dropoff site will be North Central Texas College.
Thomas Wallner editor@grahamleader.com
Graham Regional Medical Center and Graham Police Department have joined a national effort to help the public safely dispose of drugs, needles and syringes for National Drug Take Back Day.
The local event will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, April 26 at North Central Texas College in Graham. The service will be a drive-thru dropoff that is free and anonymous to drop off medications or drugs.
“You will pull in through our drive-thru lane and our nurses and GPD will get it out of your vehicle,” GRMC Community and Marketing Liaison Mia Patterson said. “It is anonymous, it’s no questions asked. So if you have illegal substances that you would also like to (bring) for whatever reason that’s okay, too. Everything will be boxed and packaged. All patient information will be protected.”
The national program is held in collaboration with local agencies and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). For the local event, those dropping off must leave the labels on their prescriptions.
“Basically, when it goes in the boxes they will then be sealed up and they have to be delivered to the DEA,” Patterson said. “GPD is working with the DEA to make sure that protocols are followed and that they are taken where they need to be, from a legal standpoint, and then destroyed properly.”
GRMC and GPD will be collecting over the counter medications, prescription drugs, illegal substances, needles, inhalers and syringes. The items dropped off can be used, unused, expired or current.
“A lot of people throw their medicine in the trash where people have access to it, so this is giving people an opportunity to dispose of their medication properly and not take a chance that somebody may find it in the trash, or children, or anything like that,” GPD Sgt. Kyle Ford said.
The event is aiming to provide a safe way to dispose of these items and cut back on drug/prescription-related accidents.
“Whether it be a mother giving something to her kid not realizing that it’s not for children, or grandpa not using an expired cough medicine from 30 years ago,” Patterson said.
GRMC decided to host an event in Graham after working closely with United Regional Health Care System in Wichita Falls and seeing the success their program had in previous years.
“From a medical standpoint, this is geared more towards elderly and it’s unrealistic to expect them to drive all the way to Wichita Falls just to give up whatever it is they have in their medicine cabinet,” Patterson said. “This is a service that we wanted to provide locally for Graham, for Young County and for surrounding rural areas that don’t, or can’t, make the commute to Wichita Falls.”
During the National Drug Take Back Day in April 2023, a total of 663,725 pounds, or 332 tons, was collected nationwide. Texas collected the largest amount during that period, with a total of 47,695 pounds collected.
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