Drug Take Back Day nets over 75 pounds of unused medications in Cibola County

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(Pictured from left to right) Cibola County Sheriff’s Department Deputy Bryan Gardner, Grants Police Dept Officer Robert Lucero, Lori Vigil of CSAPC, Officer Samuel Slater, and Officer Victor Diaz collected unused medications at Drug Take Back Day in October. Not pictured is Laguna Police Department’s Lieutenant Fran Flores.

Monday, November 11, 2019; Grants, NM: This October’s Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) National Drug Take Back Day netted over 75 pounds of unused medication in Cibola County.

There were two sites residents safely disposed of their unused medications: Grants Walmart and the Laguna Police Department. Cibola County has participated in Drug Take Back Day for the last two years and collected over 300 pounds of medications during that time.

“It is a pleasure to coordinate and host these events in collaborating with our law enforcement and Walmart to make our county a safer place,” said Lori Vigil, program specialist for the Cibola County Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition (CSAPC) which helped coordinate and staff the Drug Take Back locations.

“By collecting used medications and being able to educate our community members on proper disposal, and locking up their medications, we all take part in creating a safer community,” added Vigil.

CSAPC member Amanda Ewelllent a hand during Drug Take Back Day, “I love my community and it is especially important that we remove dangerous drugs that can be addicting before they are misused or abused.” A prevention educational booth hosted by CSAPC member Stacy Bond provided information on opioid awareness and medication disposal.  

Unused or expired medications left in the home can be a hazard for family members, creating an opportunity for accidental poisoning and unintended overdoses to occur if medications fall into the wrong hands.

Cleaning out medicine cabinets of unused or expired medications, and securing medications, like prescription pain pills or opioids, keeps them from being misuses and abused, and lowers the overall risk factors in our communities.

Cibola County residents dispose of over 75 pounds of unused medications during October’s Drug Take Back Day.

Vigil further advised, “Don’t leave your medications unsecured or give others access to your medications where they can be taken without your knowledge.  Also, remember not to share your medications with others, as your medications are prescribed specifically for to your health needs and calculated for your size and weight to be effective. If shared with others, the medications could unintentionally injure them.”

If you missed Drug Take Back Day, you can still dispose of medications anytime in Cibola County at the following locations:

  • Parkhurst Pharmacy, 1208 Bonita Ave # A, in Grants
  • Cibola County Sheriff’s Department, 114 McBride Road, in Grants
  • Laguna Police Department, 1 Industrial Pkwy Loop
  • ACL Hospital in Acoma, 80 Veterans Blvd., in Acomita

According to Vigil, Grants Walmart and Walgreens provide “Dispose Rx”, a packet with a solution which can be mixed with tap water and safely dissolves medications.

Drug Take Back Day was made possible by the support of Cibola County Sherriff’s Office, Grants Police Department, Laguna Police Department, Grants WalMart and CSAPC.  

For more information on medication disposal and security visit the Dose of Reality New Mexico website: https://doseofreality.com/prevention/

For more information contact Vigil at (575) 597-0346 or email: lvigil@swchi.org.

This news release is made available by the Cibola Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition, a program of the Center for Health Innovation, and funded by the New Mexico Office of Substance Abuse Prevention (OSAP).