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A pharmacy initiative in NHS Lothian, Edinburgh, has resulted in a 300% increase in the number of inhalers being returned to community pharmacies for sustainable disposal, the health board has said.
In a statement published on 2 August 2024, NHS Lothian said five pharmacies in and around Edinburgh took part in the sustainability project — which involved adding stickers to dispensing bags to encourage patients to return inhalers to the pharmacy — between February and May 2024.
The initiative ran for 10 weeks, with 80 inhalers having been returned to community pharmacies in the two weeks after the project, a 300% increase on the 20 inhalers returned in the two weeks before the stickers were in place.
The stickers were used in addition to other public-facing guidance that had already been in place, advising patients to return inhalers to pharmacies for safe disposal.
Simon Gemmell, pharmacist at Fleming Pharmacy in Liberton, south Edinburgh — which took part in the project — said: “As pharmacists, we are aware of the impact of medicines on the environment and understand that if we are to reach net zero, we all need to play our part, including by reducing medicines waste.
“This project demonstrates that through small initiatives, which aren’t time consuming or costly to implement, huge results can be achieved.
“A key part of this initiative was reminding people that inhalers can’t be recycled in the same way as other plastics and need to be returned, like all medicines, to a community pharmacy for safe disposal, and it’s really pleasing that this message landed so well.
“The ongoing ability of community pharmacies to support initiatives such as these is dependent on having the appropriate resources to aid delivery.”
Katie Johnston, respiratory lead primary care pharmacist at NHS Lothian, commented: “Lots of people use inhalers and often do not think about the environmental impact these can have.
“Community pharmacies are ideally positioned and essential to support improved respiratory care and help reduce the environmental impact of all medicines.”
The Scottish scheme is the latest in a string of initiatives to drive inhaler recycling through community pharmacies.
In July 2024, the team behind a 12-month pilot scheme involving 59 community pharmacies in East Kent said that it had so far processed 20,400 inhalers for recycling since the scheme launched in November 2023. The ‘Re-Hale’ scheme is a collaboration between NHS Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board and pharmaceutical manufacturer Chiesi.
Prior to this, a two-year pilot in the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland area, which resulted in more than 52,000 inhalers being recycled, along with 305 tonnes of CO2 captured and prevented from being released into the atmosphere, was discontinued in March 2023.
Around 73 million inhalers are prescribed in the UK annually, making up around 3% of total NHS UK carbon emissions.
