Feb

14

Alice Hyde reminds visitors to properly dispose of needles, syringes

Malone, NY (2/14/2019) – With a Community Medication Collection Bin at University of Vermont Health Network – Alice Hyde Medical Center collecting more than 100 pounds of unused prescription medication since being installed last summer, the hospital is reminding members of the community that it is important to properly dispose of their unused medications and materials like needles and syringes.

Michael Dufort, Director of Alice Hyde’s Pharmacy, reported in February that the hospital has collected 132 pounds of medication through the drop box, which is located outside the Park Street Café on the hospital’s Main Floor.

With nearly half of that total – 66 pounds of medication – collected in 2019, it’s clear that the drop box is an important resource for residents in our community. But Dufort added that it’s important for people to use it properly.

“The containers made available by the New York State DEC program, or medication collection, are only equipped to handle prescription and over-the-counter solid and liquid medications,” said Dufort. “Alice Hyde’s medication drop box is emptied by staff members, and when needles, syringes or other sharps end up inside, their risk of injury increases. We’re asking everyone in our community to help keep our employees safe, and to properly dispose of these items rather than putting them in the drop box.”

For those in need of help disposing of needles and syringes, Alice Hyde offers collection services from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday – Friday, at our Materials Management Department on the hospital’s first floor. All sharps should be placed in a clean, rigid, leak-proof and puncture-resistant container, such as an empty laundry detergent container, and labeled with the words “bio-hazard.” For more information please call (518) 481-2213.

  • more      -

###

About Alice Hyde Medical Center
Alice Hyde Medical Center is a private, not-for-profit hospital located in Malone, NY. Established in 1913, Alice Hyde Medical Center is comprised of a 76-bed acute care facility, four family health centers, a walk-in clinic, cancer center, orthopedic and physical rehabilitation center, cardiac rehabilitation unit, and a dental center. The medical center provides a 24-hour MD staffed emergency department, laboratory, a full array of surgical services, and a wide range of outpatient services. For over 100 years, Alice Hyde Medical Center has been providing high-quality, low-cost health care to the more than 55,000 residents of the North Country. In early 2015, Alice Hyde opened The Alice Center, a new, state of the art 135-bed skilled nursing facility with a 30-bed Assisted Living Program. The facility replaced two obsolete skilled care facilities located in Malone, and is the first such facility to be constructed in Franklin County. Alice Hyde Medical Center is governed by a 13-member Board of Directors, and is accredited by the Joint Commission. Learn more at www.UVMHealth.org/AHMC

        

About The University of Vermont Health Network

The University of Vermont Health Network is an academic health system that is comprised of six affiliate hospitals, a multi-specialty medical group, and a home health agency. We serve the residents of Vermont and northern New York with a shared mission: working together, we improve people’s lives.  Our partners include:

Our 4,000 health care professionals are driven to provide high-quality, cost-efficient care as close to home as possible. Strengthened by our academic connection to the University of Vermont, each of our affiliates remains committed to its local community by providing compassionate, personal care shaped by the latest medical advances and delivered by highly skilled experts

                                                                                               

Back
}