Mind Your Meds
Many who report abuse of prescription medicine are getting it from friends, family and acquaintances. Make sure the those in your life don’t have access to your medicine. Follow the following three steps:
STEP 1: MONITOR
Parents are in an influential position to immediately help reduce access to prescription medicine because medicine is commonly found in the home. But how aware are you of the quantities that are currently in your home? Think about this: Would you know if some of your pills were missing? From this day forward, make sure you can honestly answer yes.
STEP 2: SECURE
Take prescription medicine out of the medicine cabinet and secure them in a place only you know about. If possible, keep all medicines, both prescription and over-the-counter, in a safe place, such as a locked cabinet that cannot be accessed. Spread the word to other households and encourage them to secure their prescriptions as well.
STEP 3: DISPOSE
Safely disposing of expired or unused medicine is a critical step in helping to protect your family and home, and decrease the opportunity for anyone to abuse your medicine.
For more information about safe storage and disposal of medicine, click here for an info sheet.
For information about the location of Medication Disposal Boxes in Howard County, click here.
Avoiding Opioid Overdose - What is Naloxone?
Naloxone is a prescription medication that reverses an opioid overdose by restoring breathing. Naloxone is safe, even for children and pregnant women, and has minimal side effects (nausea and vomiting). There is no potential for abuse or getting high. Obtain free naloxone medication when you attend a training at the health department and learn to save a life.
For additional information about Naloxone visit the State of Maryland Overdose Response Program page.
Responding to an Opioid Overdose Click above for more about Maryland's Good Samaritan Law