Most drug users and pharmacy retailers/wholesalers remain ignorant about the disposal of unused or expired medicines.
They do not know how to store unused and expired medicine. That’s why patients and family members need clear guidance about its disposal.
The presence of unused and expired medicines in cabinets and cupboards is a potential hazard. It can be harmful to humans, the environment, and wildlife in any form.
In short, improper disposal of unused and expired drugs poses a challenge to the environment.
Index..
- Indian Pharma industry and medicines users
- An issue with disposal of medicines
- Indian Pharmaceutical Association view on disposal of expired and unused medicines
- Facts on unsafe drug disposal in India
- Need For Proper Disposal Of Medicines In India
- Role of Pharma Software Development Companies in Expiry Drug Management
- Features of Pharmacy Management System that assists in managing the disposal of expired medicine
- Need of expiry management system
- Features of pharmacy software that assists in managing expired medicine
- Why should new pharma businesses be aware of the expiry medicine disposal system in India?
- How SWIL software can help in the disposal of expired medicines
- Wrapping Up
Indian Pharma industry and medicines users
India is reportedly a majority country in which everything is seen to be excessive. If any disease takes birth here, then the government has to make a lot of efforts to prevent it and control it.
Medicines have to be arranged properly, and at the same time, their effects have to be discussed.
But, what is also most important is to avoid the serious consequences caused by the widespread use of drugs in the environment due to their improper disposal.
Improper disposal of drugs is the cause of most multi-drug resistant microbes. It becomes a breeding ground for this, which is a threat to all humanity.
An issue with disposal of medicines
Medicines come under the category of basic life-saving needs. From simple coughs and colds to any major diseases, people generally use medicines to treat the ailments.
It is actually good and consists no problem.
But the issues arise when people/patients have no awareness about the disposal of unused and expired medicine. Sometimes people through it in household garbage. At the same time, pharmacies destroy unused and expired medicines unsafely.
Thus, both users and Pharmacists are completely unaware of the consequences of expired drugs’ unsafe disposal practices.
Indian Pharmaceutical Association view on disposal of expired and unused medicines
The Indian Pharmaceutical Association (IPA) has asked the government to develop strict rules and policies for the disposal of pharmaceutical products to increase awareness about the lack of protocols and disposal of expired and unused medicines to attract attention.
Also, there will be a need to prepare a guidance document on the disposal of drugs. There is a dire need to collect, isolate, and dispose of pharmaceutical products at home and in specific stages.
Facts on unsafe drug disposal in India
- The Central Pollution Control Board estimates that registered healthcare establishments in India produce 4,057 tonnes of medical waste every day.
- Treated wastewater samples obtained from industrial regions in South India revealed dangerous amounts of antibiotics, despite India being a global Centre for pharmaceutical drug production.
- Ciprofloxacin, along with 21 other medications, was being dumped into this water at a rate that could treat 90,000 people while also being exceedingly harmful to plants and aquatic life.
Need For Proper Disposal Of Medicines In India
Pharmaceutical medicines with a specified expiry date become ineffective or toxic to the human body after the expiry date. These drugs cause serious environmental pollution by contaminating water supplies, soil, and wildlife. If discarded improperly, they prove to be equally dangerous for the ecosystem.
Antibiotics thrown into sewage water can transform many sensitive microbes into deadly drug-resistant pathogens. In this way, its adverse results can be obtained anywhere in the environment.
Hence, there is an urgent need for proper disposal of medicines in India and elsewhere as well.
Reason 1
Most of the Indians buy the maximum amount of medicines, or they stop taking the medicines before the prescribed period by the doctor. By doing this, they save an extra quantity of medicines.
Instead of returning it later, they throw it in the drain or adopt some other wrong method. Thus, limiting additional purchases of drugs is the first step towards being environmentally responsible and saving money.
Reason 2
The rate of flushing unused or expired medicines improperly is very high in India. It should be necessary to stop inviting other problems related to medicine disposal.
But for some certain medications, flushing is preferable as their dilution in wastewater is safer than the accidental intake by a person.
Thus, it should be necessary that a patient knows about the disposing of such medicines or pharmacies give them pre-alert about the disposing of drugs in the right way.
Reason 3
It is essential to have a system to facilitate drug donation in the community to avoid improper disposal of medicines. It will help the needy who are unable to buy proper medicine.
Another option is to give back unused drugs to pharmacies, sending them to industries to be recycled and reused.
This concept will sensitize the community and will also protect the environment.
Reason 4
People should be aware of eco-friendly ways of disposing of medicines to avoid disposing of tablets, salt, and liquid medicines.
But it requires proper guidance. Before disposal, liquid drugs must be mixed with salt, flour, charcoal, or non-toxic powdered spices, such as turmeric or mustard. To prevent them from using animals, people can mix them with inert substances, such as ground or leftover tea leaves.
Another method, if a small amount of liquid medicine is present, one can dilute it with a large amount of water and then withdraw it.
Reason 5
Another way we can dispose of expired medicines is to issue labels on the medicine strips/bottles with the necessary information on their disposal.
Alternatively, local medical disposal facilities should be set up by the authorities.
Role of Pharma Software Development Companies in Expiry Drug Management
The medical industry has seen tremendous changes in its drug management and delivery process as technology advances.
With the help of technology software development, companies implement pharma management software for small, medium, and large pharma businesses. Pharma software simplifies processes related to drug delivery, management of inventory, and sales.
The current COVID-19 pandemic shows the scope for software adoption in the pharma industry and increases its popularity. This reduces overall complexity and supports the overall development of pharmacies and drug stores. It also helps in revenue generation and streamlining processes.
So, if you want to incorporate the power of a feature-rich pharmacy management solution in your pharma business, then this blog is especially for you. It provides an intelligent settlement system to help patients and yourself and provides termination management to deal with any sales loss.
With Pharma Software Solution, you will have a system to stay ahead of the competition, including Patient Management and Document Management, Cash Flow Management, Regulatory Requirements, and Expiry Management with Alert feature.
Pharmacy Management System tool that assists the disposal of expired medicine
Every pharmaceutical retailer needs a particular set of features in their pharmacy software based on their business needs. Its purpose is to manage supplies and relationships with customers.
They are so preoccupied with other pharmaceutical tasks that they forget when drugs’ expiration dates are approaching or have passed. This results in a significant loss for the pharmacist, as well as a loss of client trust.
Need of expiry management system
The handling of expired medications has always been seen as an unsolved issue in pharmacy. It’s because the pharmacist isn’t aware of the proper system for managing medicine expiration dates. Being a Pharma store owner, it’s easy to get into a tangle when you don’t realize drugs you bought from a certain distributor have expired. A decent pharmacy expiration management software can help you with this.
Being a pharmacy owner, you should believe that prevention is better than cure. Thus, you should have a system with the expiry management feature. The expiry management module gives the business the benefit of prevention and its on-time identification. Additionally, you will get a reminder to return drugs, earn respect and credibility from your customers.
So, with the help of expiry management, the pharmacist can perform replacement and replenishment simultaneously. Retailers will have the option to comply with the government’s rule for disposal of expired drugs; they get alert for reorder the products that will expire in coming days and more.
Features of pharmacy software that assists in managing expired medicine
Some of the features related to pharmacy software that assists in managing the disposal of expired medicine are as follows:
Inventory Management
Inventory management is an important part of Pharmacy software. It gives accurate inventory details in real-time when needed. It helps businesses make data-driven decisions and helps in updating stock levels, selecting medicines, managing supplies, and ordering on time. It provides alerts with tips to get the proper medicine along with expiry details.
Prescription Management
The management of prescriptions is an important aspect of any medical practice. You must have a system in place that saves patient information when a prescription is written.
So that if the same patient/retailer visits you again, you can immediately supply their medications. It helps you save time and money. You will be notified of stock availability in advance in this manner. It will also be useful when retailers come to exchange or return drugs. The software keeps track of all your data and gives you a rapid overview of order fulfillment.
Reporting and Analysis
Even a small pharmacy is required to analyze complex pharmacy data by drug privacy regulations and state regulations.
Pharma software provides you with analytics functionality and set up patient care strategies in the right way. You can leverage a data subset of patient personal information, prescription transactions, supply chain, and sales data in powerful analytics.
Inventory report saves the business from drug shortage. It also provides the solution of expiry drug management and its disposal. You must consider an analytics feature to track prescription activity to detect at-risk cases.
Notification & alert
Pharmacy software offers its users notifications and alerts on fast-moving and slow-moving items. It gives real-time tracking of drug expiration and gives pre-alert to business management about the stock expiry date.
This way improves patient safety, which directly influences customer loyalty and competitiveness in the market. It helps pharmacists in the continuous delivery of medicines and related services.
Data management
The pharmacy software has a facility to collect patient records to help pharmacists make more strategic business decisions. It uses data analytics, by which the Pharmacy ERP software can provide valuable customer-centric insight and ensure that they will get the right medication. This really attracts customers. Some of the key benefits of data management are as follows:
- The use of pharmacy management software allows for a 40% drug reimbursement, making medicine more accessible.
- The pharmacy ERP software automates orders to various logistical parties based on the supply date of commodities and the delivery date.
- Pharmacy software does not generate bills for expired products, alerting providers to the problem.
- Before distribution, the pharmacy software system improves the medical labeling procedure, including production and expiration dates.
- With retail, medical store software, managing drug data and patient records is a breeze.
- With medical shop management software, providers may automatically distribute knowledge about new programs and offers.
Why should new pharma businesses be aware of the expiry medicine disposal system in India?
As per the current market scenario, the pharmacy business is ideal for many entrepreneurs across India. Pharma businesses in India go through many business processes that mainly include obtaining pharmaceutical licenses for retail and wholesale setups.
But it is also necessary that the startup consider other business functions in detail. One of the requirements is the management of expired medicine with proper disposal.
This blog gives startups a quick look at the disposal of expired and unused medicines by the Indian pharma industry.
How SWIL software can help in the disposal of expired medicines
Expiry date management and disposal can be overwhelming, especially without the aid of an integrated software solution. RetailGraph/Cross ERP/Unisolve Pharma ERP software gives visibility into all the departments of a pharmacy business.
Pharmacy Business Software provides centralized access that provides real-time visibility of sales, ordering, and customer data. This data allows the pharmacist to specify the item’s expiration date and track the data immediately. It gives you the visibility and insight needed to sell the non-expiry stock to customers.
Additionally, an advanced warehouse functionality built into the ERP can auto-calculate and track expiration dates to ensure that only the correct inventory and products are selected, used, and shipped.
Wrapping Up
Are you looking for more information on the best expiry drug management system in India? Feel free to call us. Our proficient team of customer support will help you in all possible ways. If you want, they will give you a demo. Or you can take facilitate 45 days free pharma software trial.
