Before I went into the Veterinarians office today I trusted him and thought he actually cared about me and my animals. When I left I realized he could care less and only wants my money.
I don't know your veterinarian personally, but I can just about guarantee that he does care about you and your animals and not just about turning a profit. The reason why a lot of vets tend to stock, fill, and send home their own drugs is for convenience and customer compliance.
Convenience is critical because a lot of our clients already complain continuously about how much time it takes to come to the office for the appointment, let alone a recheck, let alone going somewhere ELSE to pick up additional meds. For a lot of them, one-stop shopping is easier and they are happy to pay for the meds. If this isn't the case for you, speak up.
Compliance is even more of an issue. If the client walks out the door with the paid-for meds already in hand, they are much more likely to then disperse it to their pets as instructed (or at least mostly). If they walk out with a paper script that they then have to call in to the pharmacy, wait until it's filled, and then go pick it up, the chance of that medication reaching the pet is much lower. There's just way more time and many more steps for something to happen to prevent the animal from getting that medication - the script gets lost, they forget to call it in, there's a bunch of other errands that need to be done and pick-up gets pushed back a week or two, etc. I'm not saying that's you but it is a big, big, big problem in our field. The number one thing we are taught in vet school? Owner compliance is the biggest obstacle to a treatment plan for many cases. Ensuring the meds are with the animal at the time of departure is one step closer to making sure that is fixed.
If you heard the amount of the bill and it seemed high to you, I don't know why you wouldn't have requested to see an itemized receipt first. I trust my vet too - I've worked there off and on for ten years and love the docs to death - but would still ask for a breakdown if the math didn't add up. That's called being a smart consumer and you've learned a lesson that can apply to any field, not just vet med (have you ever gotten a car repaired, for example? Itemizing the bill is critical).
Sorry you had a bad experience but know that we as a profession are not out to steal from you, gouge you, make your life miserable, or chase you for money. You're a pre-pharmacy student. You must know that places like Publix, Target, Walmart, etc. can offer those free antibiotics because of the massive amount of money they generate each and every day from drug sales. They are huge chains that have enormous bargaining power with distributors. The amount that they pay to get those drugs in stock is likely way, way, way lower per unit than what your typical one, two, or five doctor veterinary practice will pay simply because of the volume of product being moved. Wholesale prices for the Publix purchasers means they can offer these cheap-to-make generics dirt cheap. We can't. We have to charge more to make a profit and that doesn't make us criminals.
I know you're upset, but think about your tone next time you start one of these threads - calling our profession a bunch of con artists and scammers who lack morals, ethics, and conscience is no way to get anyone on your side. And is the best way to show your lack of understanding.
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