newsnews

Residents take part in Operation Medicine Cabinet

Area residents participate in Operation Medication at Stafford Hospital Center.

By By MARTY VAN DUYNE  For the Stafford County Sun
Published: June 11, 2010

» 0 Comments | Post a Comment

STAFFORD — Partners in Aging only expected to collect about 30 to 50 pounds of discarded medications Saturday.

But the Operation Medicine Cabinet team at the Stafford Hospital Center already collected 127 pounds of medication and six large containers of sharps in less than three hours. And their team at the Spotsylvania Regional Medical Center collected even more.

A half-hour before the inaugural event ended Partners in Aging board member Karl Karch said, "We expect to collect 300 pounds or more today."

The organization hopes conduct the event in the future as a community service. One resident that participated said the going rate for a company to pick up and dispose of sharps is nearly $100.

An anonymous benefactor donated the funds to pay for the incineration of the expired, unused drugs and sharps.

The advertising and promotion was the result of combined efforts of Partners in Aging, Friends of the Rappahannock, Chancellors Village, Home Instead Senior Care and members of the Stafford/Spotsylvania TRIAD including Mary Washington Hospital.

Karch said the event could not have been conducted without the support of the Stafford and Spotsylvania sheriff's offices since a law enforcement officer was required to be on site at each location.

In addition to Karch, the team at Stafford Hospital included Stafford sheriff’s deputy Sgt. Darrell English, Emily Sperlazza of Mary Washington Hospice, John Tippett of Friends of the Rappahannock and Kristen Hansen of Chancellor's Village.

Participation in Operation Medicine Cabinet was open to residents of Planning District 16, which includes Caroline, King George, Spotsylvania, and Stafford counties and the City of Fredericksburg.

Marty van Duyne is a contributing writer for the Stafford County Sun.