Dear Windsor and Essex County residents:

Health Canada recommends that everyone clean out their medicine cabinet at least once a year. Between November 1 to 30, 2011, Windsor and Essex residents are invited to clean out their medicine cabinet and take leftover, unwanted, and old medications to a Windsor-Essex pharmacy for safe disposal.

Pharmacies take back prescription, over-the-counter, homeopathic, and pet medications, herbal remedies, vitamins, minerals, and used Epipens® and asthma puffers.

Dear Windsor and Essex County pharmacists, community organizations, spiritual organizations,veterinarians, childcare providers, organizations/agencies/centres that provide older adult care and services:

Keep reading and learn how to:

• Promote medication safety including this year’s Medicine Cabinet Clean Out Campaign by checking out resources for clients.
• Create medication safety policies.

Dear Windsor and Essex County workplaces:

Keep reading and learn how to:

• Promote medication safety including this year’s Medicine Cabinet Clean Out Campaign by checking out resources for employers.
• Create medication safety policies.

 
In Windsor and Essex County, over 30% of residents who completed a campaign online survey in November 2009 said they “always or most of the time” keep expired prescription medication and over 50% reported they keep leftover prescription medication.

Keeping leftover and expired medication in the home is dangerous because it increases the risk of unintentional and intentional poisonings. According to the Canadian Institute for Health
Information National Trauma Registry Bulletin (2002) the leading cause of poisonings in children under ten and the elderly is medication.

Campaign Resources for Everyone:

• Promotional Poster

Fact Sheets:

• Antibiotic Resistance and You.
• Youth and Prescription Drug Abuse–A Problem Close to Home.
• Older Adults and Medication Safety.
• Children and Medication Safety.
• Medication Safety: Just the facts.

Community campaign resources for professionals:

1) Ideas to promote the Medicine Cabinet Clean Out Campaign

• For pharmacies.
• For workplaces.
• For spiritual organizations.
• For community organizations.
• For organizations/agencies/centres that provide services for older adults.
• For veterinarian clinics.
• For child care providers – October 26, 2011 letter to daycares and Ontario Early Year Centres.

2) Sample medication safety policies

• For pharmacies.
• For workplaces.
• For spiritual organizations.
• For community organizations.
• For organizations/agencies/centres that provide services for older adults.
• For veterinarian clinics.

Past campaign evaluation data:

SOLUTIONS in Health Inc., 2009
SOLUTIONS in Health Inc., 2010

For more information:
Call 519-258-2146 ext. 3100
Email jpalesh@wechealthunit.org

Reference:
Canadian Institute for Health Information, 2002. National trauma registry bulletin. April 2002. Poisoning injury hospitalizations, 1999/2000. Retrieved August 24, 2010, from http://secure.cihi.ca/cihiweb/en/downloads/bl_ntrapr2002_e.pdf