Anyone in Long term care?

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Verbena

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How much an hour is a fair rate? I was offered a job and they are paying me 48/hour. Any thoughts?
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Verbena said:
How much an hour is a fair rate? I was offered a job and they are paying me 48/hour. Any thoughts?
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Someone offered you a job?! OMG, take it now! Before some new grad swipes it from you! :laugh:

Sorry I am not familiar enough with that field to say much but keep in mind it will very regionally as well. Good Luck trying to get a more helpful response. :thumbup:
 
It's a pretty good rate for the job. Not stressful at all. 8 hour days with 1 hour lunch. Pretty much making pre-packs of medicines and the occasional IV orders. Creatinine Clearance calculations sometimes, Epogen reviews, etc.

I'd do it for $48/hour. It usually comes with a sick benefits package also.
 
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I work in ltc. The rate depends on what part of the country you live i
 
Do the pharmacists in long term care have to deal with insurance claims?
 
I believe they have their own billing department to handle that. Insurance claims get easier the more you do it. It's hard to get a LTC job, once you're in, you never want to leave.
 
Verbena said:
How much an hour is a fair rate? I was offered a job and they are paying me 48/hour. Any thoughts?
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I'd jump all over it. I love my LTC job. Most pharmacists may consider it boring, but I think its great
 
I'd take that job too and if you need extra money, you can always pick up a shift or two doing retail. The hours for LTC are great and you don't have to deal with insurance and crazy customers.
 
Barackemrack said:
I'd jump all over it. I love my LTC job. Most pharmacists may consider it boring, but I think its great
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What is your typical day like in LTC? I'm interested in applying to one. Thanks! :)
 
How do you guys find these LTC jobs? I'm not sure where to look. Any tips would be helpful, like company names or where to search. Thanks!
 
For the pharmacist who work in LTC do you think I can negociate the rate to 51 an hour?


I really want this job but since I have 3 children and a new baby... Im hoping to make as much as I can...

Thanks in advance.
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Verbena said:
For the pharmacist who work in LTC do you think I can negociate the rate to 51 an hour?


I really want this job but since I have 3 children and a new baby... Im hoping to make as much as I can...

Thanks in advance.
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unless you have prior experience or if you're working a 2nd or overnight shift i'd imagine it won't be easy to negotiate for a higher wage
 
Allure said:
I believe they have their own billing department to handle that. Insurance claims get easier the more you do it. It's hard to get a LTC job, once you're in, you never want to leave.
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Are you speaking from personal experience or from people you know currently doing it and enjoy it so much?
 
I'm not speaking from experience since I only did one rotation, but it was a really good rotation. I just know people who really love their jobs.
 
Anyone have experience with Omnicare and can share their opinion?

What about working evening shifts such as 3pm - midnight with weekends off 3 out of 4 weeks and the one weekend you work goes 9am-6pm? Still have a life much?
 
Thanks for the reply guys... To answer a few questions: I found the job through indeed.com. I think I was very lucky. The market is so tight in the Philadelphia area.
 
Style said:
Anyone have experience with Omnicare and can share their opinion?

What about working evening shifts such as 3pm - midnight with weekends off 3 out of 4 weeks and the one weekend you work goes 9am-6pm? Still have a life much?
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hmm... do you happen to live in Houston? b/c i remember a posting was up about a month ago.

yes, i have worked for omnicare. it's busy, and of course there's lots of corporate things that you probably don't agree, but i did enjoy my time there
 
Tomorrow will conclude my first week at Omnicare. It's pretty cool so far, even with the stress of becoming assimilated to new "everything."
 
I am opening a pharmacy in North Miami, a closed door pharmacy...150 beds to start with potential to grow to 500 hundred beds. Im the admin and director and will probably be starting the pharmacist at $47-$50 an hour, depending on many factors..No retail at all...all closed door meaning no retail patients; just blister packing and answering ALF questions. Pretty easy when there is no retail to deal with. If it were me, i would jump all over this as a closed door pharmacy is pretty easy to deal with...
 
Doctor M said:
I am opening a pharmacy in North Miami, a closed door pharmacy...150 beds to start with potential to grow to 500 hundred beds. Im the admin and director and will probably be starting the pharmacist at $47-$50 an hour, depending on many factors..No retail at all...all closed door meaning no retail patients; just blister packing and answering ALF questions. Pretty easy when there is no retail to deal with. If it were me, i would jump all over this as a closed door pharmacy is pretty easy to deal with...
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lol at your job ad

but seriously, its great seeing that you're doing so well
 
I thought I would bump this. I just graduated in august 2010 and worked as a pharmacist for 1 month and a half at cvs. Then I interviewed for a job for omnicare and started work in the beginning of oct. We are one of the smaller facilities. I make more money than retail with oncall included and its closed door of course. I also stay 2 minutes away from work so oncall is easy since I can go to the pharmacy and fill something then just let my courier pick it up and deliver.I know of no classmates that are in long-term care and was just wondering how rare it is to be a long-term care pharmacist. I'm amazed at how much of a victory it is for me to work in a place like this. Its been 4 months and I can safely say I am here for the long haul.
 
jasonkido said:
I thought I would bump this. I just graduated in august 2010 and worked as a pharmacist for 1 month and a half at cvs. Then I interviewed for a job for omnicare and started work in the beginning of oct. We are one of the smaller facilities. I make more money than retail with oncall included and its closed door of course. I also stay 2 minutes away from work so oncall is easy since I can go to the pharmacy and fill something then just let my courier pick it up and deliver.I know of no classmates that are in long-term care and was just wondering how rare it is to be a long-term care pharmacist. I'm amazed at how much of a victory it is for me to work in a place like this. Its been 4 months and I can safely say I am here for the long haul.
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please do us all a favor and keep this on the dl, ltc is one of the best kept secrets...

it is highly repetitive and could be boring for some though
 
Verbena said:
For the pharmacist who work in LTC do you think I can negociate the rate to 51 an hour?


I really want this job but since I have 3 children and a new baby... Im hoping to make as much as I can...

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

Are you a new graduate or do you have experience? What will be your argument for a higher salary? Have you worked LTC before? Do you bring some sort of experience or skill to the job that would warrent a higher salary?

If you are a new grad or you do not have any LTC experience then you have no reason to ask for a higher salary.
 
jachen84 said:
please do us all a favor and keep this on the dl, ltc is one of the best kept secrets...

it is highly repetitive and could be boring for some though
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As if retail is not repetitive and boring, or hospital for that matter.
 
Allure said:
As if retail is not repetitive and boring, or hospital for that matter.
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qft...pharmacy itself by nature is a boring and repetitive job. I also do consulting, which mixes things up. I get 52/hr and we have a company that does our call now so it is much better. I think LTC is the best or home infusion.
 
Doctor M said:
I am opening a pharmacy in North Miami, a closed door pharmacy...150 beds to start with potential to grow to 500 hundred beds. Im the admin and director and will probably be starting the pharmacist at $47-$50 an hour, depending on many factors..No retail at all...all closed door meaning no retail patients; just blister packing and answering ALF questions. Pretty easy when there is no retail to deal with. If it were me, i would jump all over this as a closed door pharmacy is pretty easy to deal with...
Click to expand...

I will forward you my resume and start making plans to move to Florida!
 
jasonkido said:
I thought I would bump this. I just graduated in august 2010 and worked as a pharmacist for 1 month and a half at cvs. Then I interviewed for a job for omnicare and started work in the beginning of oct. We are one of the smaller facilities. I make more money than retail with oncall included and its closed door of course. I also stay 2 minutes away from work so oncall is easy since I can go to the pharmacy and fill something then just let my courier pick it up and deliver.I know of no classmates that are in long-term care and was just wondering how rare it is to be a long-term care pharmacist. I'm amazed at how much of a victory it is for me to work in a place like this. Its been 4 months and I can safely say I am here for the long haul.
Click to expand...

When someone gets one of these jobs they stay.
 
MountainPharmD said:
When someone gets one of these jobs they stay.
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Have you been in LTC? From what I heard a lot of ltc pharmacies consists of 100 people or more working. However, we have about 12 people employed (3 full-time pharmacist, 3 part-time rph, 3 dispensing techs, 2 order entry techs, and human resource personnel who also handles all of our billing. One of our full-time pharmacist is actually kinda part-time since he spends half of the time at the store and the other half traveling and doing consulting.

We fill 300-400 a day with an estimated 200 added that are cycle fill. The workload gets done everyday with ease and I mostly just relax and read up on some things in my spare time which recently included reading this forum.
 
jasonkido said:
Have you been in LTC? From what I heard a lot of ltc pharmacies consists of 100 people or more working. However, we have about 12 people employed (3 full-time pharmacist, 3 part-time rph, 3 dispensing techs, 2 order entry techs, and human resource personnel who also handles all of our billing. One of our full-time pharmacist is actually kinda part-time since he spends half of the time at the store and the other half traveling and doing consulting.

We fill 300-400 a day with an estimated 200 added that are cycle fill. The workload gets done everyday with ease and I mostly just relax and read up on some things in my spare time which recently included reading this forum.
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hmm your pharmacy seems to be a much smaller operation. you guys must have on call right? that's the crappy part about the job
 
I also work in long-term care.

I like oncall for the reason that it normally takes 10 minutes per call and the money is generous. Also we service areas that are 2 hours away and if they call for a stat we can call walgreens if possible to fill the first dose and I call a courier service near there to deliver. I can do that at the comfort of my place.
 
guys, be careful on thisone:

I met two RPhs who left LTC because of overnight on-call. One went back to retail the other, hospital. I live practically next door to an LTC pharmacy, but I was not going to tolerate being on-call and then having to go to work the next day.
 
gambit78 said:
guys, be careful on thisone:

I met two RPhs who left LTC because of overnight on-call. One went back to retail the other, hospital. I live practically next door to an LTC pharmacy, but I was not going to tolerate being on-call and then having to go to work the next day.
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My schedule is very favorable. We barely get calls after 10pm. Most calls come at 7-9. You make your money quick and then you spend the rest of the night watching tv and eating dinner. In my four months I have only had 2 calls after 11pm. You take the good with the bad but in my case I love oncall so its all good. The money is good and the workload at my place is a cinch. Of course this is your miles may vary type deal but from my experience thus far ltc is great
 
oh snap, I had no idea there were all these LTC pharmacies in my area!

Anyone heard of Lone Star LTC pharmacy? Their site said last updated 2008. I pass by its offices often, but didn't know if the pharmacy was still there. I was interviewed there in 2008. Yikes! could their Houston chapter have closed down? This was the one that was on-call.

Some said of Omnicare. It's freakin down the street from me! THey have 9 Rphs fulltime? but needed a PIC currently. I noticed they advertised no on-call.
 
I am 7 months into long term care and am still loving it. I plan to stay for a few more years and hopefully nab an ltc job closer to home if possible. If anybody has any questions about ltc, you can pm me or ask the question here.

Things may change for the worst in june since we have just invested in a med dispense machine to dispense multidose packages to assisted living facilities. The workload could get ugly.
 
Just wanted to give an update on Omnicare. They found a new PIC so I'm guessing they have been there for around a year. THe big thing this summer is they had an RPh opening and I went straight to the pharmacy to introduce myself and emailed the national recruiter to let them know how interested I was. He confided in me that they had tons of applications and I'm guessing I know why: decent hours, no on-call (that I have heard of), closed door LTC with no third party hassle (as their ads stated). I haven't heard back from them, so I'm figuring they picked the best of the litter. Haha. I wasn't the best candidate. I wondered if I should have experimented and totally lowered my salary demand.

BTW,
The Lone Star LTC pharmacy is still around as of this year, its 4th year in HTown.
 
Just wanted to give an update. I had wondered what happened to Lone Star, and I figured, let me drive there and I noticed the empty parking lot. I peered through the windows and it looked abandoned! I googled up and found that Pharmerica took over the LTC pharmacy and perhaps closed it down to eliminate competition. Wow.
 
Does anyone know any locations that omnicare has in the dallas/fort worth area? Please provide specific information where possible. I am looking into applying in that area. I dont currently live in the area but i am considering moving.
 
JanuviaGrl said:
Does anyone know any locations that omnicare has in the dallas/fort worth area? Please provide specific information where possible. I am looking into applying in that area. I dont currently live in the area but i am considering moving.
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Never thought to check their website?? Google? *facepalm*
 
gambit78 said:
Just wanted to give an update. I had wondered what happened to Lone Star, and I figured, let me drive there and I noticed the empty parking lot. I peered through the windows and it looked abandoned! I googled up and found that Pharmerica took over the LTC pharmacy and perhaps closed it down to eliminate competition. Wow.
Click to expand...

Yup, I used to work for Lone Star, which was bought out and shut down, and was fortunately offered a place at PharMerica. However, as of August Omnicare has been trying to buy out PharMerica, so the same situation will happen again inevitably. Thankfully I have worked for Omnicare previously, hopefully that will help me somewhat.

Moral of the story: Long Term Care is not the most stable place to be right now
 
$48 per hour sounds good but better you get clear about other benefits & allowances also. :) One more thing to take care about is you don't use your resources for the job.
 
jachen84 said:
Yup, I used to work for Lone Star, which was bought out and shut down, and was fortunately offered a place at PharMerica. However, as of August Omnicare has been trying to buy out PharMerica, so the same situation will happen again inevitably. Thankfully I have worked for Omnicare previously, hopefully that will help me somewhat.

Moral of the story: Long Term Care is not the most stable place to be right now
Click to expand...

No ****ing ****??!? I did not know this... don't those two do the bulk of the LTC business? Wouldn't that be like CVS trying to buy out Walgreens?
 
Verbena said:
How much an hour is a fair rate? I was offered a job and they are paying me 48/hour. Any thoughts?
Click to expand...

I just wanted to update you guys on how I am doing. I have been with the company for 3 years now and I am now the supervisor. There are 11 pharmacists and 14 technicians under me and my current pay is 58 an hour. I still love my job!!
 
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Verbena said:
I just wanted to update you guys on how I am doing. I have been with the company for 3 years now and I am now the supervisor. There are 11 pharmacists and 14 technicians under me and my current pay is 58 an hour. I still love my job!!
Click to expand...
Which company?
 
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