#GiveBack Campaign Calls for Proper & Safe Medical Waste Disposal

WORDS LIM TECK CHOON

On 15 June 2023, the second phase of the nationwide #GiveBack campaign was launched to promote responsible disposal of medical waste.

#GiveBack is a nationwide Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) effort of GSK Malaysia in collaboration with pharmacy chains Alpro Pharmacy, AM PM Pharmacy, BIG Pharmacy, CARiNG Pharmacy Group, FirstCare Pharmacy, Health Lane Family Pharmacy, Mega Kulim Pharmacy, Park@city Pharmacy & Medical Supplies, Straits Pharmacy, and Sunway Multicare Pharmacy.

It is supported by the Malaysian Pharmacists Society (MPS).

FEATURED EXPERT
DR JONATHAN PAN
Vice President and General Manager
GSK Malaysia & Brunei

Dr Jonathan Pan, the Vice President and General Manager of GSK Malaysia & Brunei, says. “Our #GiveBack campaign supports these goals by offering the Malaysian public a convenient way to dispose of their used inhalers and leftover medicine blister packs responsibly, lessening their impact to our environment.”

In line with this goal, the campaign expanded its partnership with additional pharmacy partners and headthcare groups this year.

WHY #GIVEBACK IS IMPORTANT TO US
  • All around the world, healthcare systems contribute around 5.9 million tonnes of solid waste to landfills and over 4% of carbon emissions.
  • One significant issue is the disposal of pressurized asthma inhalers, as people often discard them before they are completely empty. As a result, the greenhouse gases in the propellants of these discarded inhalers are released into the environment, contributing to global warming.
  • Unfinished pills left in discarded blister packaging—the “packaging” of pills—can lead to leaching of chemicals into the ground or waterways, contaminating plants and animals and, eventually, people that consume these plants and animals.
FEATURED EXPERT
PROFESSOR AMRAHI BUANG
President
Malaysian Pharmacists Society (MPS)

Professor Amrahi Buang, President of the Malaysian Pharmacists Society (MPS) further adds, “GSK’s #GiveBack campaign is aligned with the Ministry of Health Malaysia’s ‘Returning Medicines’ campaign, and we urge all Malaysians to support this effort by bringing their used or unfinished asthma inhalers and blister packs to any of the collection points for proper disposal.”

MAKING AN ART OUT OF DISCARDED MEDICAL WASTE

During the launch, students from The Design School at Taylor’s University unveiled a sculpted art made of discarded blister packs and asthma inhalers.

This art serves to highlight the importance of proper medical waste disposal and its impact on the environment, while also providing an opportunity for the next generation to get involved in environmental advocacy.

The installation will be displayed during the GSK #GiveBack Roving Truck roadshow at high-traffic venues across the Klang Valley, stoking greater awareness and increased interest in sustainability.

HOW YOU CAN #GIVEBACK TO MOTHER EARTH

Any time of the year
Drop off your used blister packs and asthma inhalers (make sure that they are empty) at any of the following pharmacy outlets:

  • Alpro Pharmacy
  • AM PM Pharmacy
  • BIG Pharmacy
  • CARiNG Pharmacy Group
  • FirstCare Pharmacy
  • Health Lane Family Pharmacy
  • Mega Kulim Pharmacy
  • Park@city Pharmacy & Medical Supplies
  • Straits Pharmacy
  • Sunway Multicare Pharmacy

17 to 26 June 2023
Drop them off at the #GiveBack Roving Truck roadshow.

For more information about the campaign, visit your nearby pharmacy or hospital, or drop by the The Design School @ Taylor’s University’s Instagram (link opens in a new tab).

Experts Detail the Hidden Threat of Microplastics in Our Environment

WORDS PROFESSOR DR CHRIS GIBBINS & PROFESSOR TING KANG-NEE

FEATURED EXPERTS
PROFESSOR DR CHRIS GIBBINS
Vice Provost
Research and Knowledge Exchange
University of Nottingham Malaysia (UNM)
PROFESSOR TING KANG-NEE
Head of the School of Pharmacy
University of Nottingham Malaysia (UNM)

On Earth Day, observed on 22 April and themed ‘Invest In Our Planet’, we would like to call your attention to the pressing matter of microplastic pollution.

Did you know that Malaysia is ranked third (after The Philippines and India) in the list of countries contributing most to marine plastic pollution? Dutch academic Lourens JJ Meijer highlighted these rankings in a paper published in 2021, and the position of Malaysia should be enough to cause us to reflect on our contribution to the global problem of plastic waste.

WHAT ARE MICROPLASTICS?

When we think of plastic waste we tend to think of plastic bottles and bags, but once these everyday items break down, they cause a more insidious threat to the environment – microplastic.

Microplastics are microscopic pieces of plastic that are often invisible to the naked eye, with the very smallest pieces being within the nano-size range (less than 1 µm, which is 0.001 mm).

In fact, some plastics are deliberately manufactured at this microscopic size range—for example, beads used in toothpaste and other personal care products, or used in industrial processes.

THE MICROPLASTICS THREAT ON HUMAN HEALTH
  • There is mounting evidence that it causes respiratory problems, especially for those with existing conditions.
  • There are also increasing reports associating inflammatory bowel disease with the presence of microplastics in stool.
  • Although there is no direct evidence to link microplastics and cancer, its presence can lead to tissue inflammation which may result in DNA damage, the initial stage of cancer development.
HOW MICROPLASTICS FIND THEIR WAY INTO OUR BODY
How microplastics can end up in our body. Click on the image for a larger, clearer version.

For the past four years, our research team from the University of Nottingham Malaysia has been looking at microplastics in the Langat River in Selangor, as well as in the bodies of animals that live in the river.

We have found microplastic particles in every one of the hundreds of river water samples we have collected, in concentrations ranging from two to more than 80 pieces per litre of water.

We have also found very high concentrations on the riverbed, with up to 150,000 pieces of microplastic sitting on the riverbed surface per square meter.

Most alarmingly, we have found microplastic in the body of almost every single animal we collected, including aquatic insects, mussels and fish. Fish were the most highly contaminated, and our latest work suggests that microplastic is not only present on the gills and in the guts of fish, but in their flesh.

This is very worrying, as it means that people who consume fish caught from our rivers are likely to be routinely ingesting microplastic. The same applies to fish caught from oceans, where microplastic contamination is also very high.

WE NEED TO URGENTLY DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS

The human health risks posed by microplastics mean that urgent action is needed.

Reduce exposure to microplastics

This can be extremely challenging as microplastics are already in the air we breathe and the water we drink, and very likely in much of the food we eat.

Some good places to start:

  • Use filters on tap water
  • Avoid eating hot food or drinking hot drinks from plastic containers
  • Avoiding eating bottom feeders like shellfish and prawns 
Reduce the use of single-use plastics and hence the amount of plastics added to the environment

Removing the microplastics already present in the environment will be difficult, but we can take action to reduce how much more we add. This can only be achieved with concerted efforts on multiple fronts.

Individually we should be mindful of how much plastic we use, and especially how we dispose of it.

  • Bring our own stainless-steel containers to pack food bought from food stalls
  • Use glass or metal bottles to refill instead of buying bottled water go a long way in reducing the amount of single-use plastics that may end up in the environment.
Improve and adopt recycling habits

This needs to be supported by better waste management facilities and recycling options being made available by local councils.

Taxes or other fiscal incentives could be introduced to help reduce plastic use and increase the use of recyclable plastics.

Government funding for research to help find new ways of removing plastics and microplastics from our marine and freshwater ecosystems, and to help develop new biodegradable plastics, is greatly needed.

LET’S TAKE ACTION!

Malaysia has T-minus seven years to fulfil its Roadmap Towards Zero Single-use Plastics 2018-2030. Time is ticking. The attitudes and behaviours of everyone, from the authorities and industry to the public at large, need to change for the sake of both current and future generations.

Let’s all try to use less plastic between now and next year’s Earth Day.

Why You Need to Dispose Unwanted and Unused Meds Properly, and One Convenient Solution to Do This

WORDS LIM TECK CHOON

ARE YOU DISPOSING YOUR UNWANTED OR UNUSED MEDICINES CORRECTLY?

If you gather all these medications and dump them into the trash bin, you’re not exactly doing it properly.

SO, HOW SHOULD YOU DO IT?

Well, the best way to dispose of unwanted or unused meds is to drop them off at a proper facility—a facility that is equipped to dispose of these medications in a manner that will not cause possible harm to other people as well as the environment.

HMM, WHERE IS THE NEAREST FACILITY TO DO THIS, THEN?

Well, as of the time of writing, there is a convenient drop-off point for all your unused and unwanted medications: the nearest CARiNG Pharmacy outlet.

This is made possible through the Do It Right programme, a collaboration between the Faculty of Pharmacy of Universiti Malaya and the pharmacy retail chain.

CARiNG Pharmacy outlets will operate as a drop-off point for these medications, which will then be transported to Kualiti Alam Incineration Centre for further processing and proper disposal.

“Unwanted medicines left at home are a safety issue. Over 10,205 people required hospitalization because of medicine poisonings across Malaysia. Unwanted medicines in homes pose a health hazard especially to children,” Loo Jooi Leng, the Marketing Director of CARiNG Pharmacy, says to us in order to explain the rationale of this programme.

YES, YOU CAN NOW DROP OFF YOUR UNUSED & EXPIRED MEDS AT ANY CARiNG OUTLET
Do It Right programme logo

  1. READ
    Read the labels of the medicines in your cabinet and check which are expired and no longer needed.
  2. REMOVE
    Remove the expired or unwanted medicines from your cabinet and place them into a bag.
  3. RETURN
    Return the bag to any CARiNG Pharmacy near you and their staff will place it in a secure bin for safe disposal.

For more information on the Do It Right programme, you can visit their website (link opens in a new tab).