Return Your Used Injection Pens
There is a pen return box in the waiting area, on your right as you come in through the main door. It takes any empty injection pen, of any brand, whoever prescribed it. There is no charge, no appointment, and you do not have to be our patient. The needle is the one thing that must never go in it, and our pharmacy counter will give you a container for that.
A used pen is two problems in one object
The needle is the dangerous part. Dropped into a household bin it injures the people who handle your rubbish, and they have no way of knowing it is in there. Most needle-stick injuries outside a hospital happen exactly that way.
The pen body is the wasteful part. It is good quality, durable plastic. Millions of empty pens in India are incinerated or buried in landfill every year, because until recently there was no route to recycle them.
Handled properly both problems go away, and it costs you about a minute. Two containers, one rule: the pen goes one way, the needle goes the other, and neither goes in the dustbin.
What goes into the box
Any empty injection pen. It does not matter which brand it is, which doctor prescribed it, or what it was prescribed for.
| Kind of pen | For example |
|---|---|
| Insulin pens | any brand, long acting, short acting, premixed or weekly |
| Diabetes and weight pens | semaglutide, liraglutide, dulaglutide, tirzepatide |
| Teriparatide pens | usually prescribed for osteoporosis |
| Growth hormone pens | the daily pens children use |
| Fertility pens | the daily injections given through an IVF cycle |
| Cholesterol pens | evolocumab, alirocumab |
| Biologic pens | adalimumab, etanercept, secukinumab, dupilumab and similar, for arthritis, psoriasis, eczema and severe asthma |
Two rules, and they are the whole of it. The pen must be empty, and the needle must already be off it. Nothing else is asked of you.
What happens to them
The box is part of PenBack, a pre-filled pen recycling initiative run by Dr. Reddy's Laboratories. Pens dropped into it go to a certified biomedical waste management partner under that initiative, where they are reclaimed and repurposed rather than landfilled.
Caspian Healthcare is a collection point for it. We are not paid for the space, we do not run the recycling, and the box takes every brand of pen rather than one company's. Nothing about having it here changes what any of our doctors prescribe.
The needle never goes in the box
This is the part most people get wrong, and it is the part the box on its own cannot solve for you.
Ask us for a needle container. Our pharmacy counter will give you one at no cost. Keep it at home and drop each used needle in straight after your injection. When it is about three-quarters full, tape the lid shut, bring it back to us, and collect a fresh one. It goes out through our licensed biomedical waste channel.
Three rules for the container. Never fill it to the brim, stop at about three-quarters, or the needles catch on the rim when you close it. Tape the lid before you travel with it. And keep it out of the reach of children, the same as you would any medicine.
If you do not have one yet, use a hard plastic bottle with a screw cap. An empty shampoo or phenyl bottle is fine. Write "needles" on it. Never use a plastic cover, a paper packet, a milk sachet or a tin.
Take the needle off using its outer cap rather than holding the bare needle. Do not bend it, break it or burn it. Do not wash and reuse one, even your own.
If somebody is pricked by a used needle
Let it bleed, wash the place with soap and running water, and cover it. Do not squeeze it and do not put antiseptic into the wound. Then see a doctor the same day, not the next morning: some of what a needle-stick injury needs only works if it is started within hours. A doctor is on the premises here at every hour.
Three things to hand over at the counter
These do not belong in the drop box, but they do not belong in your bin either. Bring them to the pharmacy or reception counter and we will dispose of them for you.
Used needles and lancets
in a closed container. A needle in the drop box endangers whoever empties it.
Pens that still contain medicine
including expired ones. The recycling stream takes empty pens only, but we will dispose of these for you.
Reusable pen devices you no longer need
the durable pen left over when your insulin is changed. It has metal parts inside, so it cannot go into the plastic recycling, and there is no reason for it to sit in a drawer.
Using a glucose sensor or an insulin pump?
Device waste is the part nobody talks about, and it is growing faster than any of it. Every one of these has a needle inside, and almost all of them are going into kitchen bins today.
Glucose sensors and their applicators
changed every one or two weeks, and there is a needle inside the applicator.
Pump infusion sets, reservoirs and inserters
changed every three days, which is more sharps than almost any other patient generates.
Lancets from your glucometer
the same container as your pen needles.
Empty insulin vials
glass, so keep them in a container of their own and tell us what is in it.
Collect them at home in your needle container, or in a larger hard container if the applicators will not fit, and hand it over at the counter. A sensor applicator will not go into the small container the pharmacy issues, so ask for a bigger one.
While you are here, have your technique checked
If you take insulin or any weekly pen, ask at the counter for a technique check. Farheen or Manzoor, our obesity educators, will watch you give one injection and correct the four things that quietly spoil control: rotating the site, the pinch, how long the needle stays in, and whether your needle length suits you.
It takes about five minutes, there is no charge, and you do not have to be a patient here. Somebody returning a bag of empty pens has been injecting for months, which is exactly the person whose technique has drifted without anybody watching.
Questions people ask
Can I bring pens of any brand?
Yes. Every brand is accepted, and so is every type of injection pen, whatever it was prescribed for and whichever doctor prescribed it.
Do I have to be a patient at Caspian Healthcare?
No. Anyone may use the box, and the injection technique check is open to everyone as well.
Is there any charge?
No. Returning pens is free and the needle container from our pharmacy counter is free.
What do I do with the needle?
Take it off the pen before you bring the pen in, and keep it in a needle container. Never put a needle in the drop box and never in the household bin. Ask at our pharmacy counter for a container to keep at home.
I was given a teriparatide pen by my orthopaedic doctor. Can I bring it here?
Yes. Empty it, take the needle off, and drop it in the box like any other pen. You do not need to be a diabetes patient.
My child is on growth hormone. Can we return those pens?
Yes. Growth hormone pens are the same kind of pre-filled plastic pen and they are welcome.
We have finished an IVF cycle and have a pile of empty pens. Can we bring them?
Yes, bring the whole lot. The empty pens go in the box and the needles go to the counter in a closed container.
Can I put a used pen in my household recycling bin?
No. A used medical pen is biomedical waste rather than household plastic. Your local recycler will not process it, and any needle left on it makes it dangerous to handle.
My pen is not empty. Can I still return it?
Not into the box, because the recycling stream takes empty pens only. Hand it to our counter and we will dispose of it safely for you.
What about my glucose sensor and its applicator?
Bring them to the counter rather than the box. There is a needle inside the applicator, so it must never go into a household bin.
I am a pharmacist. Can my pharmacy have a box?
PenBack is open to participating pharmacies. Speak to your Dr. Reddy's representative, or ask at our reception and we will point you in the right direction.
PenBack is a public awareness initiative by Dr. Reddy's Laboratories (reference GG-IN.24.03.2026.3162). Caspian Healthcare acts as a collection point for it. This page is general information and does not replace your own doctor's advice.
Need to see a doctor?
Tell us what you need and we will call you back, or ring us now. Someone answers at any hour, and if we are not the right place for your problem we will tell you that.