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Who wouldn’t get excited about a change resulting in 10 million fewer pieces of paper a year! That’s the scoop on pharmacy prescription information sheets…you know, the enclosure with every single prescription that you probably don’t even read while you’re throwing it away. Now, there are some you should read…a first time prescription, for instance. However, after you understand the precautions, use, side effects, drug interactions and storage (my favorite, for a recently prescribed drug: “do not store in the bathroom” which is where I keep all medical stuff)…such information is typically not really needed for refills. So our enterprising pharmacy folks, nudged by the Sustainability Team, began reducing paper for refills. Completing implementation of new pharmacy software made it possible. Then we reformatted the essential information, worked with our forms supplier, and used up six months’ inventory of already printed forms (after all, we didn’t want to throw out millions of sheets while trying to reduce waste…duh!). About 50% of all “scripts” (pharmacist-speak for prescriptions) are refills, so you can understand how we could save 10 million pieces of paper yearly. Also, a coupon can be printed on the bottom of the essential information you still get, for example, $1 off 6 oz. of Wegmans Food You Feel Good About Super Yogurt (so you can buy some probiotics that are good for your gut or, more nicely put, your digestive system). Our pharmacists can answer questions about this change, and you may request a printed info sheet anytime. P.S. We are working on paper supply that would have more recycled content. And the plastic bag that holds your medication and information can be placed in our recycling containers, along with other plastic bags. |