Unused meds

[ch319]

So i spent £1200 on meds on my 2nd cycle of icsi privately. I was 2 weeks into buserilin when I found out I was pregnant naturally. Total miracle and over the moon. Unfortunately I now have a lot of meds which I won't be using and got no idea what to do with them. What would you do? Xx

[Hidden]

Same issue here I have a full set of meds and it went wrong for me at down reg / clinic just told me to keep them! Seems strange to just hold onto them until expiration date.

[ch319 in reply to Hidden]

So frustrating isn't it. I feel like throwing them is a waste and so I'm holding on to them!!

[Hidden]

Congratulaitons, that is wonderful news. How many weeks are you?

Ask your IVF clinic or the drug company if any unopened drugs can be sent back, but now the drugs have been prescribed to you, I doubt they can and it's illegal to sell them privately.

I guess just see it as a relief that you no longer need the drugs in your system. A shame for the wasted money, but try not to see it that way - just see the pregnancy. Well done, lovely news. xx

[ch319 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you for your advice. I am now 18 + 4 and I can't believe where the time has gone. From being trapped in a time warp waiting to get to 12 weeks I now feel the time is running away from me!

[Hidden in reply to ch319]

Such a lovey outcome. Hope you are feeling well during your pregnancy. xx

[DianeArnold Partner Nurse Fertility Network UK]

Hi ch319. Well first of all brilliant news about your pregnancy, and obviously I hope it is straightforward. That's the good news. The bad news is that unfortunately it is illegal to sell drugs or give them away once they have been dispensed to you. Obviously we all look after them perfectly while waiting, and during treatment cycles, but it can't be proven that they haven't been tampered with at all, unless they were kept in the clinic/hospital environment. They will have to be handed in to a pharmacy, where they will be destroyed - I'm so sorry. A relative of mine passed away recently, and we had nearly £20,000 worth of leftover drugs, all perfectly looked after. They have all be destroyed! I even tried to find a charity that might take them for use abroad, but no. So sorry about this, but let's look forward to your little one's first scan. Diane

[ch319 in reply to DianeArnold]

Yeh I suspected this might be the case. I wouldn't try to sell them it's more I just don't want them destroyed and feel the need to hold on to them until baby is born. I feel like it's a small amount of money lost for such a massive gain. She is worth every penny xx

[Hidden in reply to DianeArnold]

Funny how things change, I used to be a receptionist in a busy dispensing surgery in the early 90's. We routinely collected unused drugs to be sent abroad and some GP's even dipped into them to give some extras to patients who were financially struggling. It does seem a ridiculous waste of resources.

[ch319 in reply to Hidden]

Agreed very frustrating. In an ideal world I would love to pass along to someone just about to start their ivf to help them save some pennies. But I'm thinking a phone call to the clinic for training is the best solution

[DianeArnold Partner Nurse Fertility Network UK in reply to Hidden]

Hi Sunonarainyday. Exactly! I've been trying to offload some very expensive drugs abroad, but so far no luck. I shall keep trying though, fingers crossed! Diane

[Hidden in reply to DianeArnold]

Unsurprisingly it seems the WHO decided, as always, that some guidelines were in order in the late 90's:

who.int/hac/techguidance/gu...

Sad really.

[DianeArnold Partner Nurse Fertility Network UK in reply to Hidden]

Hi sunonarainyday. Just found part of an article i wrote a couple of years ago (couldn't find it the other day) .....According to the Department of Health, "Medicines Control Agency", it is illegal for a patient to sell or supply prescription only or pharmacy only medicines for another patient. They can only be supplied under the supervision of a pharmacist and if "prescription only", against a doctor's prescription.

If the doctor or pharmacist wishes to re-use medicines, the law does not prohibit it, but under their "Code of Ethics", pharmacists must not consider reusing any medicine returned by a patient. Doctors have similar professional standards. The issue really is one of "good practice", in which case, the answer would be "no" unless the medicines concerned were kept at the clinic at all times, as would happen on a hospital ward where medicines can be re-used by other patients...... Diane

[Hidden in reply to DianeArnold]

Hi Diane, ahh so strictly speaking it's not illegal for pharmacists to take in unused meds and redistribute them but it's frowned upon, which I can completely understand if the medications are no longer sealed, out of date or not worth much, but many are none of these things. It's all a bit daft imo.

I have a friend who is the manager of a large care home for young adults with physical disabilities. They're not allowed to share regular pain meds with other patients so if patient A is given 2 ibuprofen from a strip of 8, the other 6 get thrown away automatically even if patient B also needs 2 tablets at the same time. They're not allowed to leave them with the patient for another time either and the admin effort it would take to organise storage for each individual patient is not worth the time, so the amount of wasted NSAID's is ridiculous, let alone other drugs made redundant when meds are changed etc.

It's so nice speaking to you Diane; this is an amazing group not least because of you and your colleagues admin abilities and the wonderful support everyone gives each other is truly inspirational!

I've learned so much and been able to pass some of this knowledge onto our daughter who has just started injecting prior to egg collection, she's not 'into' groups herself (it's a self preservation strategy, not reading about bad news will maybe stop it happening) but I'm collecting lots more info for future reference depending on what transpires.

Have a good day xx💐

[robbie03]

Congratulations!!! Our clinic said they can't refund meds but they would take them back for training purposes...xx

[ch319 in reply to robbie03]

Oo then I wouldn't feel so bad as they are being used and have purpose and not being destroyed!

[DianeArnold Partner Nurse Fertility Network UK in reply to ch319]

Hi. That sounds a good idea to me. Diane

[ClarabGlasgow]

Congrats that's amazing! Can I ask does that mean you kept trying during your injections? I am due to start IVF on day 21 of next cycle and af is due any day now. I can't imagine not trying before day 21, did you just keep trying during injections? Is it safe? Xx

[ch319 in reply to ClarabGlasgow]

No we weren't trying during injections. We must have already been pregnant when they started. I had a scan at the clinic and the consultant the good news is I had ovulated that month but obviously it was way to early to detect that it had been successful! Very odd situation! Once I started injecting we actually stopped trying. I think if you still want to be intimate you should use protection once injecting. I could be wrong though. Good luck with your cycle xx

[Lizzielizzielizzie in reply to ch319]

Congratulations! I understand you wanting to hold on to them until baby is here. I would do the same... in fact I did, and used them for another cycle of ivf after I miscarried my natural pregnancy. I really hope you won't need them, but if you throw them out you might regret it.

[ClarabGlasgow in reply to ch319]

Thank you! I think they are going to tell us to use protection prior to injections but that will mean letting ovulation pass me by which I don't want to do. Good to know injections are safe should a miracle happen! Xx

[ch319 in reply to ClarabGlasgow]

Absolutely they can't create a false positive and they haven't harmed baby although I was told to stop injecting immediately xx

[Lishah]

Hello. I am starting my ivf journey. And if it is still possiblt I would like to take some of the medication of ur hand if it is right one for me. I provide a prescription as evidence and willing to pay the postage costs. Any penny u can save is a help in this journey.

[Lizzielizzielizzie in reply to Lishah]

It’s illegal to pass on medication in the uk unfortunately.