Wednesday, October 24, 2007

We don't know, don't ask us

Things your pharmacist doesn't know:
What that thing on your arm is.
Why your doctor ordered that test.
Why your doctor gave you pills for cholesterol when your cholesterol is fine.
If you can eat before your test.
If you are still contagious (but I'm going to return to the back of the store now).
If the commercial is telling the truth.
Why drug companies charge so much (and no, they don't put gold in the pills, that's really funny, I've never heard that one before)
Which insurance company is the best.
Why your insurance coverage is canceled.

There's lots more we don't know too. I just don't know what those things are.
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Thursday, October 11, 2007

WYPHY Blog Presents . . .

Great lines from pharmacy history

Customer - "CVS down the block has this for a dollar cheaper, but they don't have any in stock"
Owner - "No problem, when I don't have any in stock, I sell it for a dollar cheaper also"

CONGRATULATIONS!

Congratulations on living your whole life off the government/your parents/your spouse. However, those of us here do something called "work". This means occasionally we have to take a break from discussing with you the entire medical history of your friend's brother, or the wonderful medical show you saw on TV last night, and actually be productive. If you'd like, feel free to talk to the wall for as long as you'd like, it's just as interested as I am.

Monday, October 8, 2007

Deck of Cards

"I'm sorry Ma'am, this insurance card has been terminated by the insurance company . . . no, I'm sorry, this one doesn't work either . . . okay, yes, that card works"
What the F$%# do people keep their old, expired insurance cards for?

Quick One

Patient - "Why did you give me the generic on this?"
Pharmacist "That's what your doctor wrote on the prescription"
Patient "But why didn't you ask me? I don't want a generic"
Pharmacist "According to the state law, we have to give you what the doctor writes"
Patient (annoyed) "But that's not right, why don't you give me what I want?"
Pharmacist (also annoyed) "See right here on your prescription, it says 'must fill generically'. But I'll be glad to check with the doctor and get you what you want"
(time passes, as the insurance claim is reversed and rebilled, and the pills are replaced and recounted)
Clerk "Okay, here you are"
Patient "Why is this more money"
Clerk (to pharmacist) "She wants to know why this is more money"
Phm "Your insurance plan has a higher copay for brand names when generics are available"
Pt "No it doesn't! My plan covers everything"
Phm "I'm sorry, I don't make the price, I get it from your insurance copay online"
Pt "No, that's not true . . . (etc, this goes back and forth for a while, with the same thing being said over and over. Finally, the patient calls her insurance company on her cell phone, standing in front of the pharmacy counter, and speaks to them for fifteen minutes"
Pt (to pharmacist, angrily) Never mind, I'll just take the generic.

Saturday, October 6, 2007

Why does your pharmacist hate you

Well, he or she may not. If you bring in a prescription, take the medicine, pay your insurance copay, and leave, the pharmacist probably likes you. But in perhaps a majority of cases, you are infuriating the pharmacist on a regular basis.
Why should I care, you may be asking. Well, at some point in your life you are probably going to want a pharmacist to help you with a real problem. You be surprised how often this happens, and you (the patient) are going to expect the druggist to attend to you right away, for free, and spend as much time as you need. This despite the fact that the normal prescription nets the pharmacy somewhere in the nature of 3-4 dollars profit. But when the doctor makes a mistake writing a prescription (and they often do) or when something odd medically is happening to you that you think might be medication related, you're going to want that person in the white jacket to spend as much time as you need with you, and right away, and for free. If you're young, this may not occur for years, by which time the local pharmacist will be extinct anyway. And if I'm not around ten years from now, let me wish you good luck waiting on hold for someone at the national facility.
So why does your pharmacist hate you? Well today's reason is the mail order prescription. Every pharmacist has heard multiple instances of some form of this statement "Hi, I filled my prescription through the mail order pharmacy, but I can't reach them, so I thought I'd ask you my question".
Great, they make the profit (meager though it may be) but I'm the one whose time you are going to waste. In the time I spend discussing with you, the person who is killing my business, I could have filled ten prescriptions. I hate you. I really hope they screw up your meds bad.