As a leader, she took the initiative a year ago to hold an information meeting about the consequences of medicine residues in surface water. She was shocked at what she heard. ”We know that antibiotics are bad for the environment, but did you know that hormones that are in the contraceptive pill, among other things, can change the sex of fish? Fish can also become very sick from commonly used painkillers such as diclofenac and naproxen. Other organisms also have a great interest in clean water.”
The easiest solution? Prescribing less medicines and focusing more on prevention. But yeah. “People generally expect to receive a prescription after a doctor’s visit,” she says. “However, we know that many of the drugs we prescribe are not being used. Then it is also our task to point out the proper disposal of medicines. And that is, very simply, returning it to the pharmacy.” Van der Woude tries to draw attention to this in many ways, such as informing through waiting room screens. “Of course I talk about it in the consulting room. There are also other methods to get rid of, say, back pain than taking painkillers.”