For all matters concerning the overlapping disciplines of medicine and
Museology I suggest contacting Adrienne Drapkin, Director of Medical Museum
at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. They can be found via the
internet.

Mark Towner
Assistant Director
Northeast Document Conservation Center
100 Brickstone Square
Andover, Massachusetts 01810
Tel: 978-470-1010
http://www.nedcc.org

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On
> Behalf Of Kara J. Hurst
> Sent: Tuesday, May 23, 2000 9:28 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Medicine
>
>
> Anne,
> I can sympathize with your problem.  I am just this week
> completing the transfer/deaccession of medical instruments, bags,
> and medicines to a more appropriate institution and came across
> much medicine, remedies, etc.  I, too, am finishing my Master's
> in Museum Science and from what
> I have learned, its best to dispose of these drugs in a safe
> manner.  With unmarked vials of powders and pills, it's best to
> call your local HazMat to come pick up these things.  In
> addition, some of these materials are actually illegal (e.g.
> cocaine) to keep.  Unless your
> institution is medically oriented and can provide standard
> written policies on proven storage methods, I think its safer to
> dispose of the medicines.  Off-hand I cannot cite any sources as
> to my opinion, but will pass them along when I can.  Best of luck!
>
> Kara J. Hurst
> Registration Intern
>
>
>
> Anne Kirstin Holm wrote:
>
> > Hello all -
> >     I'm working on my Masters project, an inventory of a
> collections storage
> > area at a local museum in Seattle. Part of the project is doing
> condition
> > reporting and making recommendations for how to better store
> some objects.
> > I'm a little stumped on one aspect of the collection which is from a
> > pharmacy - various medicines and herbal remedies, some of which have
> > ingrediant lists, and some of which are more in the line of
> Lydia Pinkham.
> > Does anyone have any experience dealing with this type of
> collection or have
> > any ideas on reference materials? My main questions are how to
> store these
> > objects, how to tell if the contents are hazardous or
> potentially illegal,
> > and whether or not it would be acceptable to remove the contents of
> > cardboard containers to mylar bags, to keep bits of things from
> falling out
> > into the collections area?
> >    Any help would be greatly appreciated,
> >      Thanks you,
> >
> >       Kirstin Holm
> >       Graduate Student
> >       University of Washington
> >
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=========================================================
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The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).