What happens to the needles and pens?

[SoCoolFan]

Hi
How do you get a rid of the used needles and pens? Thanks

I’ve just been prescribed blood thinners by the GP. She prescribed me a box of ten injections. When I picked them up from Boots, I asked for a sharps box. They couldn’t give me one, they have to be prescribed!

It took several attempts to get a sharps box prescribed. I now have one. Boots don’t take them back, we have to fill in a written request to the council.

I was astonished that the GP didn’t routinely prescribe a sharps box. I wondered how many people wouldn’t realise how to dispose of needles. After reading this thread, I think I know the answer.

When a grown woman doesn't have the sense to protect the lives of others then yes i do think she is an idiot and bloody selfish.

My dad used to get a prescription for a sharps bin from his GP. We used to return the full to the chemist.

Your council has a form the GP fills in and they will supply a bin and a collection date

You get one of these and when it is full you follow the disposal instructions.

Maybe let the drugs companies know so they can update their patient information leaflet?

this is precisely what is asked for in most other countries https://mounjaro.lilly.com/how-to-use-mounjaro#storage-and-disposal

you have a sharps container already , the pens fit , the manufactures say you can dispose of in sharps bin , you are not supposed to dispose of medicines in general waste and manufacturers say there will be medication left in pen , why bin when you can be responsible and dispose of medical waste as medical waste ?

This is what the UK site says (see image), which is either in the sharps bin or the household waste. It does not say "Do not" put in household waste like the US site does. So it's entirely understandable that UK customers following UK advice will put the pens in the household waste. The instruction leaflet also says household waste is an option.

That is weird. I had blood thinners after giving birth to DC2 and the gave me a sharps bin. To be fair I didn't have to fill a prescription as they gave me everything at the hospital before I left, and I think I handed back to the midwife on one of her home visits.

For mounjaro, I had to request a sharps bin with my first order, but it was free. I wasn't putting my pen in it but wll from now on.

I have just started with the injections and ordered a Sharps Bin but next week I am going abroad on holiday...worried about disposing of them. Any advice please?

Update on my question..Just found miniature sharps bins on Amazon and ordered.

In my health board a referral has to be done to the clinical waste team for a sharps box. It pisses me off that Secondary Care departments who provide injectable items fail to do the referral for sharps box collection. Who ends up doing the referral? Your GP surgery.

GP surgeries and pharmacies generally don't take sharps boxes from patients and the only needle exchange outlets are substance misuse places and one out of town pharmacy in my area.

I am taking Mounjaro via Voy. (Fab by the way 4 st down in 3.5 months - no side effects)

I take my pens to the chemist for their recycling scheme .. the sharps bin they supplied is collected every 3 months by my councils specialist sharps collection . (Wealden - no charge)

My pharmacist gave me a sharps box.
Please don't just put the needles in the bin!

Putting used medication containers in the bin is surely routine, even if they may have traces of the medication left in them. Should we all be taking empty Calpol bottles back to the pharmacy?

If you don't want to take your sharps bin take a small tupperware or jar that you can seal needles in until you get home.

And don’t put the filled tub in your carry-on!

This is not relevant to the uk. Other countries have single use pens where the needle is permanently attached so it must go in a sharps bin.