Local Pharmacies to Distribute Free Rx Drug Lock Boxes

The Sallisaw NOW Coalition has been chosen as one of 11 communities participating in the Strategic Prevention Framework-Partnership for Success (SPF-PFS) and Strategic Prevention Framework-Rx (SPF-Rx) lock box project.

As part of a Safe Storage Initiative, each of the 11 Community Action Networks will partner with Clif’s Pharmacy and Sallisaw Pharmacy to increase awareness of opioid misuse/abuse and to distribute 108 prescription lock boxes per community. 

Data indicates the majority of teens taking opioids not prescribed to them by a doctor obtain the prescription medications from friends or at home.

The Center for Disease Control recommends discussing the "risks to household members and other individuals if opioids are intentionally or unintentionally shared with others for whom they are not prescribed, including the possibility that others might experience overdose at the same or at lower dosage than prescribed for the patient.”

The Sallisaw NOW Coalition, in their efforts to raise awareness about the safe use, safe storage and safe disposal of prescription medication, offers these tips:

Organize and keep careful track of prescribed and over-the-counter medications. Keep stronger medicines separate from items more commonly found in medicine cabinets, keep medicines in the original bottle or container that it came in and never mix medications in the same bottle.

As outlined by the National Safety Council, opioid medications need to be stored securely, preferably locked up just the way you would if you keep a firearm in your home. To protect those you love, choose a location in your house that is out of reach and out of sight of children and visitors. 

Install a lock on medicine cabinets or use a locking medicine safe which has been properly installed. Return medication to the secure location after every use and avoid leaving medication or pill containers on countertops, tables or nightstands in open view where they can be easily accessed by others. 

Do not keep loose pills in easily opened plastic bags or containers in your purse, luggage, or office drawer. Locking travel cases are available to carry prescription medicines.

The Lock Box Project will begin by providing inserts disturbed at Clif’s Pharmacy and Sallisaw Pharmacy to include in each opioid prescription. The inserts describe the local projects and how community members can obtain a MedSafe, electronic lock box, at no cost while supplies last. Upon receiving the lock box, community members will be educated on the purpose and use of the lock box. Recipients of the lock boxes will complete a short survey when they receive the MedSafe and complete a follow-up survey three month after the lock box has been received. 

Upon the launch of the Lock Box Project in February, each community's partnering pharmacies will be listed on the Think SMART Oklahoma website (http://thinksmartok.org/safe-solutions). Think SMART Oklahoma is sponsored by Community Action Network, which receives funding via the Strategic Prevention Framework Partnerships for Success and Rx Grants provided by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP). 

For more information please contact Amy Edwards, Project Director, at the Sallisaw NOW coalition, 107 N Elm St., Sallisaw. Her phone number is 918-774-7566, and her email is aedwards@sallisawok.org.

Sally Maxwell, Senior News Director

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