On that day, the stores on West Street and in the Millbrook Mall are partnering with the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary on a medication disposal program.
“It’s kind of like spring cleaning for medications,” said Christina Tulk, the pharmacist/owner of the Shoppers on West Street.
“So anything that’s expired or outdated that could be lying around in people’s medicine cabinets, we’re encouraging them from a pharmacy standpoint to bring them in to the pharmacy where we can send them away for proper disposal."
Tulk said getting involved for the pharmacy is about medication safety and ensuring that expired and outdated medications that could cause harm to people are not taken in error.
It’s also about making sure the medications are not being diverted elsewhere. For example that they don’t end up at pill parties which are becoming common among teens.
“In a lot of those cases they’re taking expired products from their medicine cabinets, or their closets, at home and they just mix them in a great big bowl and they take them by the handful,” said Tulk.
When asked if pill parties are happening in the city, Const. Scott Mosher, the RNC’s media relations officer, replied: “I’m not naive enough to think it’s not happening.”
A quick ask of a fellow officer and he continues that they are happening here, but not as extensively as in other places.
“We’re not hearing much about it, but certainly that’s a risk when you’ve got the outdated or unused medication lying around the house. There’s always that temptation.”
It’s the second year for the event and Mosher said partnering with the pharmacies to get rid of those potential risks was something the police force felt was worthwhile and has committed to doing on all it’s jurisdictions.
“It’s not always that negative slant on narcotic drugs and stuff, but even just outdated stuff that a child might get into by accident. It’s as much about household safety as it is about keeping some of those drugs off the street.”
Expired and outdated medications can be dropped off at pharmacies at any time, but Tulk said not everyone in the community knows that. So both she and Mosher say this event is about bringing awareness and putting it in people’s minds that they can do that.
In the run of a year Tulk figures about five or six five-gallon buckets of such medications are collected at her store for disposal.
Anyone with medications they’d like to dispose of on March 22 can pick up a bag at the pharmacy to fill and then drop them off at either store between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
There will be no questions asked about the items disposed of, said Tulk.
“Just bring it in an we’ll make sure it’s disposed.”