On Saturday, Oct. 25, Portsmouth Regional Hospital and Frisbie Memorial Hospital, part of HCA Healthcare, will host the annual “Crush the Crisis” prescription drug take back day to help raise awareness about the dangers of prescription drug misuse and the importance of safe and proper disposal of unused or expired medications.
The event, which coincides with the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, offers the community an opportunity to safely and anonymously dispose of medications before they fall into the wrong hands.
National drug overdose deaths decreased by nearly 27% in 2024 according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, prescription drug misuse remains a public health crisis in the United States. In New Hampshire, there have been 149 overdose deaths in 2025, as of September 3, 2025, the most recent data available from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services.
“Crush the Crisis is more than a one-day event, it demonstrates our continued partnerships with local law enforcement to help keep our communities safe,” said Dr. Brian Sanders, Seacoast Chief Medical Officer. “Medications should be disposed of properly, and Crush the Crisis provides our communities with a safe and anonymous place to discard unused or expired medications.”
Portsmouth Regional Hospital and Frisbie Memorial Hospital are participating as part of HCA Healthcare’s seventh annual national “Crush the Crisis” prescription drug take back day. Since 2019, HCA Healthcare has helped safely dispose of more than 88,000 pounds of unused or expired medication.
Law enforcement officers from the Portsmouth and Rochester police departments will be collecting tablets, capsules and patches of Hydrocodone (Norco, Lortab, Vicodin), Oxycodone (Oxycontin, Percocet), Tramadol (Ultram), Codeine, Fentanyl (Duragesic), Morphine, Hydromorphone (Dilaudid) and Oxymorphone (Opana). Ointments, lotions, drops, liquid medication in leak-proof containers and pet medication also will be accepted. Any medications will be accepted; however, needles, syringes, lancets or liquids will not be accepted.
As a part of their commitment to combat prescription drug misuse, HCA Healthcare, the parent company of Portsmouth Regional Hospital and Frisbie Memorial Hospital, has worked with the National Academy of Medicine’s (NAM) Action Collaborative on Countering the U.S. Opioid Epidemic.
HCA Healthcare uses data from approximately 44 million annual patient encounters to help continuously improve care. The organization uses the science of “big data” to reduce prescription drug misuse and transform pain management, with initiatives in surgical, emergency and other care settings, including:
- Enhanced Surgical Recovery (ESR): a multi-modal approach to pain management using pre, intra and post-operative interventions to optimize outcomes. HCA Healthcare’s ESR programs have demonstrated significant improvements in surgical recovery and patient satisfaction, including decreases in opioid usage.
- Electronic Prescribing of Controlled Substances (EPCS): aims to stem increasing rates of opioid-related addiction, misuse diversion and death by making it more difficult for medication-seekers to doctor-shop and alter prescriptions. Physicians have access to aggregated electronic health records, providing data that will allow them to prescribe opioids judiciously.
“Crush the Crisis” will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 25, at these locations:
- Portsmouth Regional Hospital, 333 Borthwick Ave, Portsmouth, NH
- Rochester Police Department, 23 Wakefield Street, Rochester, NH
For more information, visit HCA Crush the Crisis website or call toll-free number at (833) 582-1970.