Management of medications disposal and the economic burden in a sustainable Latin American hospital

Abstract

BackgroundGlobal health systems allocate high budgets for the acquisition of medicines. However, these medicines become large amounts of drug residue upon expiration or damage. This study is the first at the hospital level in Costa Rica to analyze the management and economic impact of medication waste. MethodsA retrospective study was conducted on the disposal of pharmaceutical products and their economic impact in a private hospital with a supply chain program from 2020 to 2022. ResultsThe implementation of a supply chain program led to the incorporation of preventive strategies to reduce waste generation and updated the waste management process As well as updating the waste management process. In the period 2020–2022, most medications discarded were due to expiration. The most discarded medications were from the alimentary tract and metabolism group, followed by those from the cardiovascular system group and the nervous system group. In terms of cost, systemic antimicrobials followed by antineoplastics were the main contributors. The year 2020 had the most waste, while 2021 incurred the highest expenditure associated with the disposal of medicines. ConclusionA supply chain program led by a pharmacist could reduce waste generation and costs associated. While these results provide insight into the state of our hospital, they cannot be extrapolated to the national level since we suspect that the situation could be worse.