Question re wasting medication

Published

In my former state of residence you were not allowed to waste into the sewer system or sink due to the effects on the environment. In my current state, we HAVE to waste in the sink or toilet.

How do you do it and where do you live? I must admit I am kind of a tree hugger.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

Depends what you are wasting and how much.

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I was wasting morphine PCA into the sink until one of the fellow nurses corrected me and told me to waste into the garbage. Oops! I am in SC.

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Specializes in Peds, Med-Surg, Disaster Nsg, Parish Nsg.

Moved to Nursing and Patient Medications.

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Specializes in Pediatric Cardiology.

Depends what I am wasting.. 0.5 ml of (any med), I will waste in the garbage. PCA/Epidural, I will waste in the sink.

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Specializes in PACU.

One of our docs just squirts the drugs on the patient's bedding. She said "I've never seen anyone try to lick the patient's bedding."

I believe our policy states to use the sink, though I too worry about the environmental implications.

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As a Paramedic, when I had the occasion to waste, I would have the RN verify the waste and toss my carpuject tube into the sharps container (I once had a nurse not pay attention and she forgot to detach my tubex), or we would waste down the sink. Same at my clinical sites, any waste med went into the sharps.

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Specializes in Psych.

We can only waste down sink or toilet.

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Specializes in Cardiac, PCU, Surg/Onc, LTC, Peds.

We have to waste liquid meds into the sink also. I think it's terrible that these chemicals are purposedly placed into the sewer system. We do now have special 'sharps' containers for glass vials with meds left in them but no narcotics as we have to have the exact measurement of the waste witnessed down the sink.

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Specializes in GICU, PICU, CSICU, SICU.

I waste small amounts in garbage. Never in the sink only isotonic and colloid fluids end up in there. Antibiotics go into the hazard container. And small amounts of sedatives and/or narcotics might end up in the patient if they are in need of some calmth ^^.

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Specializes in ER, progressive care.
I waste small amounts in garbage. Never in the sink only isotonic and colloid fluids end up in there. Antibiotics go into the hazard container. And small amounts of sedatives and/or narcotics might end up in the patient if they are in need of some calmth ^^.

This. We had a talk from management about this recently, because any medicines that go in the sink eventually end up in our water system. All antibiotics go into the these white hazard containers with a blue top and a yellow cover on the bottom. Narcs are wasted in the trash, or the rest is just thrown away in the sharps bin.

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