The thought-provoking subject of how we deal with potential emergence of pharmaceutical substances in the environment is set to be a major theme of the EFPIA Annual Meetings, held from 3-5 June in Luxembourg this year.

The “Pharmaceutical in the Environment” session offers delegates the opportunity to update their knowledge of the EU PIE strategy development. It also provides them with a chance to learn about measures being enacted by the pharmaceutical industry through its Eco-Pharmaco-Stewardship (EPS) initiative – activities ongoing throughout the life cycle of the medicinal product – to reduce the amount of pharmaceuticals residues in our eco-system. Delegates will also be able to listen to Luxembourg’s own thoughts on management of PIE.

As a responsible and engaged actor, the pharmaceutical industry is committed fully to addressing this issue, whilst remaining mindful of the needs of patient to gain secure and speedy access to medicines. We are furthermore actively engaged in minimizing the impact of our activities on the environment and the unintended consequences attached the use of medicines.

Against this backdrop, we are determined to tackle these issues through frank, open and constructive dialogue with stakeholders and policy-makers, taking into account environmental and public health aspects, as well as their policy ramifications. This has given rise to a co-operative effort between EFPIA, the Association of the European Self-Medication Industry (AESGP) and the European Generic and Biosimilar medicines Association (EGA), so that we can face this challenge and contribute to the improvement of the overall situation.

A recent example of our combined success is the launch of the social media video campaign, "Medicines disposal - It's easier than you think," and an associated website, both of which were developed in collaboration with additional partners: CED, EPSA, EurEau, GIRP and PGEU. The aim of the campaign is to reach out to the general public and encourage them to understand that pharmaceutical waste is markedly different from other household waste, and should therefore be disposed of appropriately.

Collaboration is also one of the key elements of the Eco-Pharmaco-Stewardship initiative, launched by the pharmaceutical industry to tackle the PIE issue. Our ongoing task is to encourage further collaborative efforts with a view to raising awareness substantially via social media platforms.

The video and website will be launched officially at the EFPIA Annual Meetings on 4th June, but prior to this, the opportunity is already available to access information on the campaign Facebook page, and Twitter with dedicated hashtag #medsdisposal. These have been created specifically with the indentation of promoting collaboration and spreading the information.