Give Back Your Unused Drugs!

Hope everyone had a safe and happy holiday weekend,

I just found out about a new national tradition that I wanted to share with everyone and I hope you will participate!

It is well known that unused and unneeded prescription medication that is kept around the house is one of the leading sources of drug abuse. Giving a friend or family member our unneeded medication, or if it ends up being taken without our knowledge, creates a dangerous situation. Medication prescribed for you by your doctor, if used by someone else, is no longer being used under the supervision of a doctor or the way it was intended.

The case is particularly troubling with narcotic pain medications or other controlled medications like stimulants. You also may have seemingly benign, expired and unneeded medications around the house that if taken in the wrong quantity by the wrong person could do a lot of harm. For example, your blood pressure medication could be deadly if taken by a child.

You might be asking, "What should I do?". You have probably heard not to flush or throw the medications in the trash... but this weekend... you can give them away!

Saturday, April 26th is The National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day!

You can find a location near you that will accept your unneeded medications, here.

Tell your friends, family and neighbors about this great opportunity to keep our homes and neighborhoods safe!

This is the official website: http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/drug_disposal/takeback/index.html

Best,

Dr. Goldenberg
docgoldenberg@gmail.com
docgoldenberg.com

Author Matthew Goldenberg, D.O. Matthew Goldenberg D.O. is double Board Certified in Psychiatry and Addiction Psychiatry and is a certified Medical Review Officer (MRO). He is an expert in the evaluation and treatment of mental health disorders and is an addiction specialist for adults in his private practice in Santa Monica, California. Dr. Goldenberg also provides addiction psychiatry consultations to some of the nation’s top residential and outpatient treatment programs in the Los Angeles area and is experienced in the evaluation and treatment of professionals working in safety-sensitive positions. In addition to his clinical work, Dr. Goldenberg is an active author, researcher and invited speaker at local and national conferences. He also volunteers his time as a Clinical Instructor in the Department of Psychiatry at UCLA and is an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Cedars Sinai Medical Center.