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Drop Off Expired, Unused Meds on Oct. 20

Duke community members can safely dispose of medications during Operation Medicine Drop

Now is the time to look through medicine cabinets or kitchen drawers for old and unused medications.

Operation Medicine Drop returns to Duke’s medical campus Oct. 20 when Duke community members and the public can safely get rid of unwanted prescriptions and over-the-counter medications. Proper disposal prevents waterway contamination and accidental poisonings.

“All you have to do is drop off your medications, no questions asked,” said Eric Hester, crime prevention specialist with the Duke University Police Department. “By disposing of medications properly, you alleviate safety concerns. We take this time to remind parents and caregivers to keep medications locked up at home to prevent children from being accidentally poisoned.”

Bring expired or unused medications on Oct. 20 to these Duke locations:

  • Duke University Hospital, North Lobby, 6:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
  • Duke South Clinic, South Lobby, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Duke community members can also turn in medicine from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Oct. 22 at these Durham Police Department event locations:

  • Walgreens, 1812 Holloway St.
  • Kroger, 3457 Hillsborough Rd.
  • Triangle Pharmacy/Ace Hardware, 1700 East NC Highway 54
  • Kroger, 202 West NC Highway 54

Duke holds two Operation Medicine Drop events per year. Last spring, Duke collected nearly 60 pounds of medications.

Pharmacy students from Duke and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, as well a Duke Police officer, will staff tables at Duke’s Operation Medicine Drop locations. Medications will be transported to a State Bureau of Investigation incinerator in Raleigh, where they are safely destroyed.

Duke’s Operation Medicine Drop is organized by Duke University Hospital, Duke Pharmacies, local law enforcement, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Eshelman School of Pharmacy, and Safe Kids Durham County, which provides safety information to parents to prevent accidental childhood injury.