The scope of this article is to discuss the perception of health workers in relation to the disposal of drugs and analyze how this practice occurs in family health units in a city in the state of Bahia. It involved a qualitative and exploratory study together with nurses, nursing assistants, community health workers and pharmacists of Pharmaceutical Care and Health Surveillance. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with systematic observation and use of previously-drafted scripts and the content analysis method was used for data analysis. The results showed poor understanding regarding proper disposal among the workers, dissonant practices in the implementation of the regulations and a lack of communication between health surveillance and other health services. The creation of effective strategies must involve the whole process from management to the prescription and use of drugs and requires further political, economic and social participation.
Medical waste; Drugs; Primary health care