An Operation Medicine Cabinet Collection Event is being planned for April 28, 2012 at locations throughout Southern Nevada. Detailed location information is coming soon.

Boulder City Police to Present Operation Medicine Cabinet

>> Wednesday, October 13, 2010

In conjunction with the Boulder City Health Festival, the Boulder City Police Department has joined Boulder City Hospital, the Boulder City Chamber of Commerce and University of Southern Nevada to present “Operation Medicine Cabinet,” an event designed to combat prescription and over-the-counter drug abuse.

Unused and expired drugs may be dropped off anonymously and with no-questions-asked for safe disposal from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 23 at the Boulder City Recreation Center, located at 900 Arizona St. Free health screenings and information from more than 60 organizations will also be featured as part of the Boulder City Health Festival.

“We encourage all Boulder City residents to clean out their medicine cabinets and join us in safely disposing expired or unneeded medications,” said Boulder City Police Chief Thomas Finn. “This effort will help us curtail the growing threat of prescription and over-the-counter drug abuse in our community.”

Read more...

Thank You Southern Nevada

>> Monday, September 27, 2010

Thank you to everyone who participated in Operation Medicine Cabinet on Saturday, in conjunction with the DEA's first-ever national take back initiative. The turnout was phenomenal at all four Southern Nevada drop off locations. The location at the Galleria at Sunset in Henderson collected more than 400 lbs. or drugs in just four hours.

More OMC collection events will be planned soon, so stay tuned.

Read more...

Operation Medicine Cabinet Joins DEA's National Take Back Initiative

>> Thursday, September 9, 2010

Southern Nevadans are encouraged to participate in Operation Medicine Cabinet, presented on Saturday, Sept. 25 by the City of Henderson Police Department in partnership with Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and University of Southern Nevada. The event, which takes place from 9 am to 1 pm in the north Parking lot of the Galleria at Sunset, is being held in conjunction with the Drug Enforcement Administration's first National Take Back Initiative.

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department will also man drop off locations from 9 am to 1 pm at the following locations:

Unused and expired prescription and over-the-counter drugs may be dropped off anonymously and with no questions asked.

This event is supported by University of Southern Nevada College of Pharmacy's Drug Abuse Awareness Team, City of Henderson, Henderson Police Department, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, Drug Enforcement Administration, Narcotics Education Foundation of Nevada, Clark County Coroner's Office, Pain in the Drain, RxDrugSafe, Southern Nevada Health District and 8 News Now.

Read more...

OMC II and Great Success!

>> Tuesday, August 17, 2010

In February, the very first Operation Medicine Cabinet was presented in Las Vegas. The successful event yielded 287 lbs. of prescription and over-the-counter drugs, meaning less in home medicine cabinets and potentially out of the hands of children and teens. On Saturday, a second Operation Medicine Cabinet collection event was held, with nearly 800 lbs. of drugs collected in just a few hours. The demand for home medication safes, generously donated by RX DrugSafe™ and given away for free to the first 25 families dropping off drugs, created a line at the opening of the event.

Thank you to all of the Las Vegas area residents who came out and dropped off their drugs and medications in support of OMC.

Media buzz around the event was tremendous, with most of the Las Vegas area television stations reporting on the event. In total, more than 55 news segments aired in advance, on the day of, and following the event. We are grateful for their airtime to spread the word about our important event.

The success of the event would not have been realized without the diligent efforts of USN’s Dr. Paul Oesterman, the members of the Drug Abuse Awareness Team, Det. Bruce Gentner and his team from the LVMPD, USN’s marketing team, The Ferraro Group and the support of Operation Medicine Cabinet partners: Pain in the Drain, Clark County Coroner, Southern Nevada Health District, Narcotics Education Foundation of Nevada, RX DrugSafe, Drug Enforcement Administration and 8 News Now.

Below are some photos from the event.










Read more...

Map of OMC II Drop Off Location

>> Friday, August 13, 2010

Below is a map of Las Vegas Metro's Northwest Area Command. Drug collection will take place from 7 am to 2 pm on Saturday, Aug. 14.


View Larger Map

Read more...

New OMC Public Service Announcement Debuts

>> Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Once again, Operation Medicine Cabinet has partnered with KLAS-TV 8 News Now to promote the event. This week, a new PSA featuring Paula Francis debuted. Check it out.

Read more...

RX DrugSafes Donated to OMC

In support of our effors to curb drug misuse and abuse in Southern Nevada, RX DrugSafe has donated 25 home medicine safes that utilize high-tech fingerprint technology to make storing potentially dangerous medications at home simpler and more secure. The first 25 people with children or teens who drop off prescription and over-the-counter drugs at Operation Medicine Cabinet on Aug. 14 will receive a free safe, valued at more than $200. All others will receive a $100 off coupon for the purchase of a safe.

Read more...

Second Operation Medicine Cabinet Event Planned

>> Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Following the overwhelming success of Southern Nevada’s first Operation Medicine Cabinet event in February, a coalition of local organizations have come together for a second event to collect unused and expired prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) drugs from the public.

Unused and expired medications will be collected anonymously and with no-questions-asked for safe and proper disposal during the one-day, drive-through event from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 14 in the parking lot of Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s Northwest Area Command, located at 9850 West Cheyenne in Las Vegas.

Southern Nevadans are encouraged to participate and help prevent the tragic consequences of drug misuse and abuse.

Read more...

First OMC A Success!

>> Monday, February 22, 2010

Thank you to everyone who came out on Saturday to drop off their unused and expired prescription and over-the-counter drugs during the first-ever Operation Medicine Cabinet in Las Vegas. We had a great turn out. More than 200 cars dropped off more than 460 lbs of drugs and materials. This amounted to 287 lbs of actual tablets/capsules. When calculated this equaled an astounding 127,283 oral doses. That is a lot of drugs now safe and out of that hands of potential misusers and abusers.







Read more...

Drug Collection Event Location

>> Thursday, February 18, 2010

Remember to empty your medicine cabinets of unused and expired prescription and over-the-counter drugs and drop them off anonymously and with no questions asked during Operation Medicine Cabinet from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m this Saturday, Feb. 20.


View Larger Map

Read more...

Operation Medicine Cabinet Featured on SNWA's Water Ways

>> Thursday, February 4, 2010

Program partner Southern Nevada Water Authority is featuring Operation Medicine Cabinet in the February edition of Water Ways, their monthly news magazine television program. Check out the segment below.



Remember to clean out your medicine cabinets of expired and unused prescription and over-the-counter drugs and drop them off anonymously and with no questions asked at the Operation Medicine Cabinet collection event on Feb. 20 at the Las Vegas Sports Center.

Read more...

Operation Medicine Cabinet Featured on Spanish Language News

>> Wednesday, January 27, 2010

KINC-TV (Univision-Las Vegas) featured Operation Medicine Cabinet in a report during its 11 p.m. newscast on Jan. 25.

Read more...

Drug Deaths on the Rise in Clark County

>> Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Did you know that in 2000 there were 219 drug-medication related deaths in Clark County? While this number is disconcerting, according to the Clark County Coroner's Office the number of annual deaths more than doubled to 456 by 2008. Last year there were 464 deaths, but that number is likely to rise as dozens of cases are still pending.

By securing your prescription drugs and safely disposing your unused and expired drugs, you can limit access to teens and prevent unnecessary deaths to overdose.

Read more...

Survey Data Shows Where Teens Get Drugs

>> Monday, January 25, 2010

According to the 2009 Monitoring the Future survey of 12th graders by University of Michigan, 18.6 percent of the respondents who misused or abused prescription drugs took them from a friend or relative. More than half (51.1 percent) were given prescription drugs. Another 33.6 percent bought them. Emptying our medicine cabinets of expired and unused drugs is just one way to ensure prescription drugs don't end up in the wrong hands.

Empty your medicine cabinet and drop off your unused and expired drugs during Operation Medicine Cabinet on Feb. 20 at the Las Vegas Sports Center.

Read more...

KLAS-TV Channel 8 Helps Spread The Word

>> Thursday, January 21, 2010

KLAS-TV Channel 8 (CBS-Las Vegas) is helping get the word out about Operation Medicine Cabinet with a new PSA featuring veteran news anchor Paula Francis.



You can help spread the word about Operation Medicine Cabinet on Facebook. Become a fan of Operation Medicine Cabinet page and tell your friends.

Read more...

Operation Medicine Cabinet to Collect Expired and Unused Prescription and Over-the-counter Drugs

>> Tuesday, January 19, 2010

With the rate of prescription and over-the-counter drug misuse and abuse on the rise in Southern Nevada, a coalition of local organizations have partnered to cut the drug supply line: home medicine cabinets.

Unused and expired medications will be collected anonymously and with no-questions-asked for safe and proper disposal during the Valley’s first-ever “Operation Medicine Cabinet.” The one-day event takes place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 20 at the Las Vegas Sports Center at 121 E. Sunset Road, located at the corner of Las Vegas Blvd. and Sunset Road.

“Our goal is to ensure that unwanted medications don’t end up in the wrong hands,” said Sgt. Paul McCollough, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s Narcotics Division. “People vulnerable to misuse and abuse, such as children and teens, get into medicine cabinets at home or while visiting friends and family to acquire entire bottles or just a few pills at a time. These pills are often illegally sold or traded to others.”

According to the Partnership for a Drug-Free American, prescription and over-the-counter drugs have emerged as the “party” drugs of choice for many teens. A 2008 study by the organization showed that one in five teens has tried Vicodin®, a powerful and addictive narcotic pain reliever; one in 10 has tried OxyContin®, another prescription narcotic; one in 10 has used the stimulants Ritalin® or Adderall® for nonmedical purposes and one in 11 teens has admitted to getting high on over-the-counter cough medicine.

Dr. Paul Oesterman, associate professor of pharmacy practice and faculty advisor for the University of Southern Nevada’s Drug Abuse Awareness Team, says these numbers mirror what the team has observed through their work with students in Valley schools.

“Despite some high-profile tragedies associated with prescription drugs, such as Michael Jackson and Danny Gans, most people, particularly youth, are either unaware of or not concerned with the potential chemical dangers of these drugs,” said Oesterman. “There are varying strengths, side-effects and interactions to consider when taking medications that aren’t prescribed to you by a doctor or are simply misused. Unfortunately, the result can be great bodily harm or even death.”

The rise in number of prescription drug-related deaths in Clark County over the past decade is astounding, says Clark County Coroner P. Michael Murphy, DBA.

“In 2000, the Clark County Coroner’s Office reported 171 accidental drug and medication related deaths in the county. The numbers have increased each year. In 2009 there were 397, with dozens of cases still pending final report,” said Murphy.

Bruce Gentner, founder of the Narcotics Education Foundation of Nevada and detective with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said, “In addition to regularly cleaning out your medicine cabinet and safely disposing unwanted drugs and medications, it is also critical that the public safeguard their current medications at home, including limiting access and keeping track of quantities. It’s also important, especially for parents, to make certain that friends and relatives do the same.”

Operation Medicine Cabinet is a partnership of the University of Southern Nevada Drug Abuse Awareness Team, Narcotics Education Foundation of Nevada, Southern Nevada Water Authority, Clark County Coroner’s Office, KLAS-TV Channel 8 and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.

Read more...

Do You Know How To Properly Dispose Unused Medications?

>> Monday, January 11, 2010


Properly disposing unused prescription and over-the-counter drugs helps protect children, pets and the environment. The University of Southern Nevada College of Pharmacy offers the following information:

Don't:

  • Flush your medication/drugs - Flushing drugs down the toilet has been shown to pollute water supplies.
  • Pour your medication/drugs down the drain - Even small amounts of drugs may affect fish and wildlife.
  • Give unused medications/drugs to family, friends or co-workers - Your medication/drugs were prescribed specifically for you by a doctor and could be harmful to others based on their medical conditions as well as potential drug interactions.
Steps for Disposing Drugs:
  • Collect all medications/drugs that are expired or no longer being used.
  • Remove all labels containing personal information from empty medication containers. Leave all warning labels.
  • Place all solid medication (pills, capsules, etc.) into a sealable plastic bag.
  • Gently crush the medication with a heavy object.
  • Carefully open sealed plastic bag and pour contents back into the medication container, if available, and add an absorbent product, such as kitty litter, saw dust or coffee grounds.
  • Add liquid medications.
  • Seal shut the container and/or tape the plastic bag shut and discreetly discard in the trash.
If you have questions regarding your medications/drugs, talk to your pharmacist.

Read more...

  © Blogger template Webnolia by Ourblogtemplates.com 2009

Back to TOP