Robert Verscharen – Executive Vice President of Commercial Development DisposeRx

Opioids: Hidden Dangers, New Hope

Robert Verscharen on the DisposeRx difference in the proper disposal of unused or unwanted prescription drugs ~ "the difference between those methods and DisposeRx is . . . that this destruction happens right in the vial, the same vial that the product was dispensed with. We have a way that we think is ecologically superior. Our product doesn’t leech into the water table. Our product is easier to use than any other method. But we’re not parochial about this. We want to support any method to get that product out of the medicine cabinet" Robert Verscharen - Executive Vice President of Commercial Development, DisposeRx Brian Wilson: If asked to conjure up an image of a pharmacist most people would envision a friendly medical expert in a white lab coat answering questions about prescriptions. And while the drug stores of yesteryear may have been replaced in many areas by big chains, pharmacists themselves still hover near the top in the Gallup polling company's list of the most honest and ethical of professionals. Bob Verscharen is the Executive Vice President of Commercial Development at DisposeRx. He's also uniquely qualified to address the role of the pharmacist in the opioid crisis. Robert Verscharen: I had retired after a 40-year career in the drugstore and pharmacy arena. And when John approached me about DisposeRx, and its exciting adventure, but mostly it's really something that's needed now in the public domain. There are addictions out there that are affecting families, that are causing life loss and tragedy. And I don't want to see that continue to happen. So anything that I can do to help John to get the message out, and even reduce these tragedies by one, it's certainly a major undertaking and well worth the reward. Brian Wilson: Bob, your background is coming from a drugstore company. So what is the role of the pharmacist, in your mind, in this opioid crisis? Role of Pharmacist in Opioid Crisis Robert Verscharen: Well, the role of the pharmacist is primarily education. They have for many years fulfilled a portion of the responsibility to help control that crisis. And it's even becoming larger every day. The pharmacist is the person that ultimately deals with the patient immediately prior to the patient taking that medication home. So when the physician communicates with the pharmacist that an opioid is appropriate, the pharmacist evaluates that prescription, determines that in fact it is a legitimate prescription, uses his knowledge to make sure that the dosage is appropriate for that patient, and that the physician's directions are followed. Consults with the patient about the importance of following the physician's directions, and points out the things that that patient should know. For example, about a reaction that they might have to the medication. About an allergy that they have. Or about prescriptions that might not be appropriate to be used with an opioid product. Make no mistakes, there is a place in American medicine for opioids. There are pains that opioids will relieve. In fact, they're the most effective relief for many pains. It is when they are misused or overused, or ignored and left in medicine cabinets for any length of time inappropriately, that's what starts to cause the new addictions. It also contributes to the diversion of drugs that end up in illicit places. Brian Wilson: It would seem that the pharmacists could play a really potentially important role in educating about making sure that at the end of the cycle, when you get better, that the medicines are taken care of. New Product Life Cycle - "ends when the patient either fully consumes or appropriately disposes the medication" Robert Verscharen: Well, Brian, you're right. What we call it, it's a new product life cycle. Previously, a product was referred to ... the life cycle of a product was referred to as initiating when the manufacturer or the researcher developed the product, got FDA approval for the product,