• Marjorie C McCullagh, Stephanie Schim, and Pamela Ortner.
• School of Nursing, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA. mcculla@umich.edu
• J Pain Symptom Manage. 2012 Feb 1; 43 (2): 287-92.

ContextIt is the role of the hospice home care nurse to dispose of unused medications after a patient's death. However, the methods of disposal, the nurses' attitudes, and beliefs regarding the environmental and health effects of disposal practices, as well as the knowledge of applicable federal guidelines, are unknown.ObjectivesThe purpose of the study was to explore the drug disposal practices of Michigan hospice home care nurses and the related attitudes and beliefs.MethodsA Web-based survey was administered to a convenience sample (n=138) of hospice home care nurses.ResultsNearly half of the respondents reported disposing of 11 or more doses per patient. Nurses most commonly disposed of the drugs by mixing them with a noxious substance and considered this method both acceptable and safe. However, more than half (55%) reported that they dispose to sewerage always or often, and nurses were concerned about legal and environmental issues around drug disposal. Most nurses reported that returning medications to the hospice office was unsafe or extremely unsafe.ConclusionFindings from this study suggest further education, practice, and research directions.Copyright © 2012 U.S. Cancer Pain Relief Committee. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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