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Behavioral Health News

Posted on: April 19, 2023

Local Drug Take Back Day events to be held Saturday in Kenosha, Bristol

Drug Take Back Day logo

National Prescription Drug Take Back Day events will be held at two Kenosha County locations this Saturday, April 22, County Executive Samantha Kerkman and Sheriff David Zoerner announced today.

The events will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the newly rebuilt Probation and Parole Office, 1212 60th St., and the Kenosha County Center at highways 45 and 50 in Bristol. Visitors to the County Center location should enter off Highway 50 on the southeast side of the building.

In addition to a convenient place to safely dispose of unneeded medications, the events will offer people the opportunity to receive training and free supplies of the overdose-reversing medication Narcan, Kenosha County Behavioral Health staff will also be at both locations, providing information about other resources and services available in the community.

“These events are an easy, convenient opportunity to make your home safer by disposing of unneeded medications so that they cannot be intentionally or accidentally misused,” Kerkman said. “Doing that, along with getting trained on Narcan, could help you to save a life.”

Narcan training teaches people to recognize symptoms of an opioid overdose and how to administer the opioid overdose reversal drug. More information about the Narcan distribution program in Kenosha County is available at NarcanTrainedKenosha.com.

National Prescription Drug Take Back Day is a day of recognition held twice annually that aims to provide a safe, convenient, responsible means of disposing of prescription drugs, while also educating the public about the potential for abuse of medications.

The most recent events in Kenosha County, held on Oct. 29, 2022, netted the collection of 1,300 pounds of medications.

Items acceptable for collection at the local events include prescription (controlled and noncontrolled) and over-the-counter medications, ointments, patches, inhalers, non-aerosol spray dispensers, creams, vials, and pet medications.

Unacceptable items include illegal drugs, needles/sharps, acids, aerosol cans, biohazardous materials (anything containing a bodily fluid or blood), personal care products (shampoo, soaps, lotions, sunscreens), household hazardous waste (paint, pesticides, oil, gas), and mercury thermometers.

Locally, the events are organized in a partnership between the Kenosha County Sheriff’s and Kenosha Police departments, the Kenosha County Division of Aging, Disability and Behavioral Health Services, and the host venues.

“Recovery is possible and help is available, and this collaborative effort between human services and law enforcement is a great example of agencies working together to address a community problem,” Zoerner said. “And by participating in Drug Take Back Day and carrying Narcan, you can play an important role in our ongoing efforts to battle the drug overdose epidemic.”

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