Reverse Logistics of Postconsumer Medicines: The Roles and Knowledge of Pharmacists in the Municipality of São Paulo, Brazil

Aquino, Simone; Antonio Spina, Glauco; Leitão Zajac, Maria Antonietta; Luiz Lopes, Evandro

doi:10.3390/su10114134

Open AccessArticle

Reverse Logistics of Postconsumer Medicines: The Roles and Knowledge of Pharmacists in the Municipality of São Paulo, Brazil

by

Simone Aquino

^1,*

,

Glauco Antonio Spina

²,

Maria Antonietta Leitão Zajac

¹ and

Evandro Luiz Lopes

¹

Postgraduate Administration Department, Management and Sustainability, Universidade Nove de Julho, São Paulo 01156-000, Brazil

²

Health Department II, Universidade Nove de Julho, São Paulo 05004-010, Brazil

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Sustainability 2018, 10(11), 4134; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10114134

Submission received: 2 October 2018 / Revised: 4 November 2018 / Accepted: 7 November 2018 / Published: 10 November 2018

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Abstract

Environmental contamination due to the disposal of expired or obsolete drugs is a concern, since there is no specific Brazilian legislation, regarding disposal by the final consumer, thus reflecting the need for reverse logistics of medicines, after their consumption. The objective of this study was to survey the knowledge of pharmacists regarding their role in the reverse logistics of medicines and to understand the contribution of reverse logistics, aimed at the appropriate disposal of Group B waste, on a voluntary basis, by the population, in the municipality of São Paulo. A survey conducted through interviews with a hundred and sixty-one pharmacists demonstrated that 35% have partial knowledge of the postconsumer reverse logistics of their place of work and 16.8% have complete knowledge of the environmental harm resulting from the contamination of medicinal waste. The pharmacists also reported (10%) that there should be an educational plan for clients, and 50% of them agreed that incentives and disclosure, regarding the importance of reverse logistics for medicines, should be provided to consumers.

Keywords: reverse logistics; disposal; postconsumer; pharmaceuticals; medicines

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MDPI and ACS Style

Aquino, S.; Antonio Spina, G.; Leitão Zajac, M.A.; Luiz Lopes, E. Reverse Logistics of Postconsumer Medicines: The Roles and Knowledge of Pharmacists in the Municipality of São Paulo, Brazil. Sustainability 2018, 10, 4134. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10114134

AMA Style

Aquino S, Antonio Spina G, Leitão Zajac MA, Luiz Lopes E. Reverse Logistics of Postconsumer Medicines: The Roles and Knowledge of Pharmacists in the Municipality of São Paulo, Brazil. Sustainability. 2018; 10(11):4134. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10114134

Chicago/Turabian Style

Aquino, Simone, Glauco Antonio Spina, Maria Antonietta Leitão Zajac, and Evandro Luiz Lopes. 2018. "Reverse Logistics of Postconsumer Medicines: The Roles and Knowledge of Pharmacists in the Municipality of São Paulo, Brazil" Sustainability 10, no. 11: 4134. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10114134

APA Style

Aquino, S., Antonio Spina, G., Leitão Zajac, M. A., & Luiz Lopes, E. (2018). Reverse Logistics of Postconsumer Medicines: The Roles and Knowledge of Pharmacists in the Municipality of São Paulo, Brazil. Sustainability, 10(11), 4134. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10114134

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Reverse Logistics of Postconsumer Medicines: The Roles and Knowledge of Pharmacists in the Municipality of São Paulo, Brazil

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