donating drugs

[kiplette]

Kid#3 was given a whole month's supply of antibiotics which she has now been told not to take. We cannot return them to source. I am very irritated.

Have googled and seen options for donating but for the US, not here.

Anyone with better google-fu know of any way that unopened medicines can get re-distributed, or do we just take them to the nearest pharmacy and they get dumped?

[Franklan]

The following quote is from here, translated with deepl:

"Medicine donations from private individuals

The distribution of medicines in Germany is regulated by the Medicines Act (AMG).

This stipulates that medicines that have been placed on the market may not be reused because their quality and safety can no longer be guaranteed.

Storage conditions in private households often do not meet the required pharmaceutical standards; the medicines may have been exposed to strong sunlight or moisture, or may even have been tampered with.

Individual donations of medicines from private households therefore require professional inspection, which is usually very costly. Shipping small quantities can also be expensive because the associated logistics (packaging, transport, storage, distribution, etc.) are relatively extensive.

As a result, aid organisations generally do not (and cannot) accept medication donations from private individuals – regardless of the donors' good intentions."

You certainly have good intentions... But let me mention the Tylenol murders in Chicago.

[..] or do we just take them to the nearest pharmacy and they get dumped?

Sadly, yes.

[Feierabend]

My pharmacy won't take them at all any more, just tell you to take them home and put in the Restmüll.

[Franklan]

My pharmacy won't take them at all any more, just tell you to take them home and put in the Restmüll.

Different regions have different regulations.

Open this webpage Arzneimittelentsorgung and enter your ZIP-code ("Postleitzahl"). It'll tell you how to handle unneeded medication in your region.

[Robinson100]

Not an official thing, but some doctors will take some medication back - I was once given a half-used pack of tablets by my GP, and also a prescription for more.
It might be worth asking.

[kiplette]

Ok, we'll try an Apotheke, thank you people, hopefully if a siuation like Rob's is an option here, they'll be able to point us in the right direction.

'Tis a shame that there's not a bigger scheme, but understandable.