Belligerent person forms a scandal at work

[2012PharmDgrad]

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What a hell of an evening yesterday at good old WAGS! As a floater, I was covering a shift at one store I've been to about three or four times (and it's a great store with knowledgeable and well trained technicians) and little did I know I would have some belligerent bastard try to assault me about half way through the day.

Everything was great until this one middle-aged man in his 40s approached me with his wife at the consultation window. He requested that I measure her blood pressure because she was not feeling well. I politely asked him to give me about 5-10 minutes and to have a seat in the mean time while I finish assisting two other patients. The a**hole raised his voice and told me, "What do you mean to wait a few minutes, she's not feeling well?" I repeated myself and explained I have no problem measuring her blood pressure, but that he would have to wait until I am finished with the people I was busy with at the moment. I told him and his wife to have a seat.

Next thing you know, he takes off with his wife only to return about 30 seconds later acting belligerently. He raised his arm over the plastic barrier/partition that separated the consultation area from my workstation and actually hit my arm. He then grabbed my half empty, plastic 1-liter water bottle and was about to throw it at me before my technician came in and pulled it out of his hand.

Immediately, I raised my voice and told him to watch his hands and that he had NO RIGHT to form a scene. I warned him that I WILL call the police and he will get arrested. He started uttering vulgarities of all kinds in Spanish at me and the one tech I was with. The police warning apparently did not even faze him because he dared me to call the cops and challenged me. My tech left the pharmacy and demanded him to leave the pharmacy and store right away.

It was ridiculous. I felt so sorry for the woman he was with because she started crying and telling him to stop and that he was going to get arrested. This happened in front of 4 or 5 other patients, all of whom were obviously taken aback by this situation.

Within minutes, the man and his wife left the store and the store manager told me he was going to call the police so I can file an incident report. The two police officers watched the surveillance videos and asked for the man's name, but unfortunately, I didn't have this information since he didn't come to pick up or drop off any prescription.

At 10 pm, as I was getting ready to leave, a cop was waiting by the pharmacy to escort me to my car. What a nightmare. Let me tell you: the guy is very lucky I was working and that he took me by surprise. How would you experienced pharmacists handle this situation better? I've never been in this situation in 8 months I've been working as a pharmacist. Even the junkies have never been belligerent like this man when they don't get their early fills or a CII is out of stock. And this was not a bad neighborhood.

If his wife is so ill, as he stated, then maybe his best bet would have been to take her to an urgent care center, not a pharmacy. I can't and shouldn't have to drop everything I'm doing just to measure someone's blood pressure. Nearly everyone else is willing to wait a few minutes to have their blood pressure checked, even if they have a headache and do not feel well. We're not ER physicians, we're pharmacists. The guy is stupid- he probably made his wife even more ill than she already was. Sorry for the rant, but I am pretty shocked.

 

[PharmDstudent]

You should have told him that it's required that she sits quietly for 5 minutes before her blood pressure is read in order to get an accurate reading.

 

[StellargalS]

This was an irregular circumstance and I am glad to hear that the technician physically intervened on your behalf. It was warranted and preferable to the "support" I am accustomed to.

Generically speaking though I fully agree with PharmDstudent's assertion. It is so seldom that we Shepherds can request more time on the basis of clinical rational. It is indeed a valuable card to play.

 

[Pharmavixen]

We aren't physicians. If his wife was feeling ill, she needed to see her pcp, or go to the ED.

I had someone do something like that because his wife had used up her ear drops in 4 days, and the script said 10 days. I offered to sell him another bottle, charging him the cost only, waiving the fee. He replied, "I'm not going to ****ing pay!" and lunged over the counter at me (I'm 5'4" and 125 lbs, and this was a big guy. Sooooo courageous.) Luckily, my boss was there, and he rallied security to throw the guy out, and banned him.

But yes; people who get attacked by their patients is an ongoing scandal in health care. Drs and nurses have it worse, fwiw, but we are often completely on our own in the face of some seriously nasty people. Who sometimes have guns.

One of the reasons why I now work in a jail. If the customers get nasty, I have big people who will sit on them until they chill.

 

[MountainPharmD]

I think it's a combination of two things. The retail chains get the largest amount of blame. They have marginalized the pharmacist while simultaneously cultivating a fast food expectation of service in the customers. I think this has been an intentional and well thought out plan by the big retail chains with an end goal of removing the pharmacist from the pharmacy.

A second factor is the replacement of real life face to face communication with electronic means of communication. People have lost their social skills and don't know how to act in public any more. All sense of social decorum and procedure has been lost because it's not needed in electronic communication. Society has www.com, iPhoned, Twittered and Facebooked itself into a bunch of insensitive self centered *******s. The crazy crap I saw in over 7 years of retail pharmacy absolutely proved it.

 

[StallionRx]

Your a pharmacist not a doctor. Even if you took her blood pressure and spit out a reading, what good would it have done? Its a waste of time. I would have told them to go to the hospital or they can have a seat and ill call an ambulance for them. The very minute he tried to touch me or reached over the barrier in an aggressive manner I would have called the cops.

 

[BeLikeBueller]

All sense of social decorum and procedure has been lost because it's not needed in electronic communication.

👍👍 I'll second that. My pharmD classes are broadcast across three satellite campuses (and yes, satellite campuses are going to be the ruination of the profession) and I have been in classes where literally 80-90% of the class just doesn't show up. And these are supposed to be future professionals?

 

[farmadiazepine]

Your a pharmacist. Your not a doctor. You don't measure blood pressure. If she was sick she should go to the hospital. I think you handled the situation well. Good for you. There are a lot of pharmacists who get very scared in these situations and don't know how to handle them. I'm glad you knew how to!

 

[PumpkinSmasher]

Your a pharmacist. Your not a doctor. You don't measure blood pressure. If she was sick she should go to the hospital. I think you handled the situation well. Good for you. There are a lot of pharmacists who get very scared in these situations and don't know how to handle them. I'm glad you knew how to!

"You're" is the word you are looking for...😉

 

[Pharmavixen]

I think sometimes new graduates let themselves be bullied, because we aren't trained in dealing with belligerent people, and acting all apologetic can egg on domineering personalities because they realize they can get away with it.

I learned to NOT apologize if I didn't do anything wrong. When dealing with mean people, it's a mistake that puts you on the defensive, and ultimately it's an argument you will lose because it's not a fair fight.

 

[BenJammin]

I just want to say that the statement "Immediately, I raised my voice and told him to watch his hands and that he had NO RIGHT to form a scene. I warned him that I WILL call the police and he will get arrested." is incredibly idiotic and misguided. You don't fire warning shots, you shoot to stop the threat. There is absolutely no reason for you to tell him that you might call the police, you either call them right then and there or you try to deescalate the situation. As soon as he presented to be trouble and touched you, that is when you should have called the police.

Then again, I think you could have handled it differently to begin with.

 

[Sparda29]

I think sometimes new graduates let themselves be bullied, because we aren't trained in dealing with belligerent people, and acting all apologetic can egg on domineering personalities because they realize they can get away with it.

I learned to NOT apologize if I didn't do anything wrong. When dealing with mean people, it's a mistake that puts you on the defensive, and ultimately it's an argument you will lose because it's not a fair fight.

So true. Hell, I don't even apologize when I do something wrong.

 

[naseuy]

I've become one of those people who would say, "I'm sorry you feel that way".

 

[MountainPharmD]

I like the Major Payne way of apologizing...


You think I owe you an apology? Want me to take back some of those mean and hurtful little things I said? Okay. I 'm sorry you're just a little turd that can't hold your liquid out in public. Now you get on out my face before I pick you up and toss you out that window.

 

[GodsSon2011]

I've become one of those people who would say, "I'm sorry you feel that way".

this would've been my approach also. then I would've walked away like nothing happened

 

[MackandBlues]

I just want to say that the statement "Immediately, I raised my voice and told him to watch his hands and that he had NO RIGHT to form a scene. I warned him that I WILL call the police and he will get arrested." is incredibly idiotic and misguided. You don't fire warning shots, you shoot to stop the threat. There is absolutely no reason for you to tell him that you might call the police, you either call them right then and there or you try to deescalate the situation. As soon as he presented to be trouble and touched you, that is when you should have called the police.

Then again, I think you could have handled it differently to begin with.

I agree with this. Don't raise your voice. I would have called the store manager over to deal with him.

 

[farmadiazepine]

"You're" is the word you are looking for...😉

Ma bad!

 

[BidingMyTime]

Next thing you know, he takes off with his wife only to return about 30 seconds later acting belligerently. He raised his arm over the plastic barrier/partition that separated the consultation area from my workstation and actually hit my arm. He then grabbed my half empty, plastic 1-liter water bottle and was about to throw it at me before my technician came in and pulled it out of his hand.

The minute he reached in, you should have called the code your store uses for management/security, and then immediately called the police. I wouldn't have said one word to him or wasted time "threatening to call the police" him after he had hit me. That's the biggest thing you should have done differently.

Otherwise, you did nothing wrong. I would assume the policy at your store is people wanting blood pressure are put in line with other people waiting for RX's or service. So yes, the person should have to wait their turn. You could have offered to call an ambulance for the wife, when the guy complained about her not feeling well-but I doubt this would have placated him.

 

[boriqua]

I think it's ridiculous that a pharmacist can get in trouble with their license if they defend themselves against belligerent customers
if a customer puts his hand on me, it should be a WRAP

one man's opinion

 

[zelman]

I think it's ridiculous that a pharmacist can get in trouble with their license if they defend themselves against belligerent customers
if a customer puts his hand on me, it should be a WRAP

one man's opinion

I don't think any action against their license is a realistic outcome of this sort of situation.

 

[owlegrad]

I don't think any action against their license is a realistic outcome of this sort of situation.

I was thinking the same thing.

 

[PharmdA07]

Does your store have a panic button? When I used to work for one of the big chains (the other competitor of WAGS...), they had a panic button under my verification station--it basically called to the store manager and people upfront. I'd use that in such case. I would just ask the individual to calm down and step back myself to avoid physical injury and immediately call the store manager to come to deal with these people. My friend working for another chain (the one that starts the 4$ generic thing first) used to get calls from corporate about people complaining and even filing legal stuffs for her to raise voice with them (I know this is corporate bulls***) but just to cover yourself first.

 

[boriqua]

I don't think any action against their license is a realistic outcome of this sort of situation.

if you give him a hard right hook to the face and knock him on his ass?

 

[Member 5149]

👍👍 I'll second that. My pharmD classes are broadcast across three satellite campuses (and yes, satellite campuses are going to be the ruination of the profession) and I have been in classes where literally 80-90% of the class just doesn't show up. And these are supposed to be future professionals?

The beauty of some of these satellite campuses is that lectures are recorded. Therefore students can work through a busy shift in the middle of the day-I'm not sure what showing up to class has to do with professionalism other than proving you're punctual. As long as lectures are recorded..

 

[Angela1234]

So panic buttons only call the people in the front of the store? I thought they called the police. None of the stores I worked in had them. Sometimes calling the people up front isn't good because they side with the customer. As soon as someone grabs my arm and water bottle, say I am calling the police, and keep the number on speed dial. Hopefully that is enough to get the people to leave. Definitely ask the police if you should file a police report. That's what I usually do. It's a shame that these situations are becoming much more common 🙁

 

[2012PharmDgrad]

This isn't my store, actually. I am simply a floater and go all over. As I said in my original post, this is the first time in my 8 months as a pharmacist that something like this happens. I was completely taken aback by something like this and did not really believe this would ever happen to me. I consider it a learning experience. Thanks everyone for the feedback.

 

[zelman]

if you give him a hard right hook to the face and knock him on his ass?

I wouldn't think so. If you were convicted of assault, then it's possible. If you weren't and there was a complaint to the BOP, the fact that the person couldn't get an assault conviction seems like sufficient proof that the complaint is unjustified. If there was security footage of the non-patient assaulting you first, as in this case, I'd think you'd be safe.

 

[Scotttyd]

about 10 years ago I was working as an intern with a little guy (5'7" 140 lbs) but he was also a black belt. At the time I worked in a state that required a rx for syringes. we had a sign above the door threshold that said such, (We were in a not so good part of town and often had a lot of people come trying to buy them). This customer was very belligerent, the man turned around and said" Can't you read the sign?" and then proceeded to kick the sign (which was probably 7 feel plus high) The look on the guys' face was priceless