DROPPED A PILL ON THE FLOOR WHILE COUNTING

[soukig]

I only dropped 3 pills. It was my first time being in production and I just picked them up and set them aside on the table (can't recall if they were being used or not, and I remember the guy who trained me said that it's no biggie to use the spilled pills but if you didn't want to just throw them aside) but just in case they were.. Would anything bad happen to the patient that would be taking those pills.. I'm scared now.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Rukn]

As long as you didn't lose a significant amount of C-IIs, don't worry about it

 

[genesis09]

My searching for lost drugs in directly correlated with its cost. If it is lisinopril, don't expect me to look everywhere for it, but if it is Seroquel XR, I am going to find it.

Everyone drops pills and everyone more or less just puts them back on the tray and continues counting.

 

[WVUPharm2007]

If its a C-II, you pick that damned thing back up. I don't care if it gets dropped into a petri dish with anthrax growing in it. Otherwise...use your professional judgement.

 

[wagrxm2000]

5 second rule, just blow on it

 

[spacecowgirl]

5 second rule, just blow on it

Unless there is visible dirt in which case you should lick it.

 

[rph3664]

Unless there is visible dirt in which case you should lick it.

When I was a tech at the mail-order place, another pharmacist said we were supposed to lick them off anyway.

In retail, I put them in the bottle as long as a customer wasn't watching. In those cases, I would put them aside, and then replace them later.

Everyone has dropped a C-II, and maybe even lost one at some time. As long as the loss is documented and not a regular pattern, it's OK. Really. It is.

 

[PharmtoCS]

I was instructed to wipe the pill with tissue paper if it ever dropped on the floor.

 

[farmadiazepine]

STFU

 

[owlegrad]

At a fast food place putting dropped food on a tray would be terrible.

In the pharmacy it's completely normal.

 

[NateRobinson]

If it's a generic medication, then dispose of it according to the strongpak program if you work for CVS. I'm sure every chain has a strongpak equivalent (pharmaceutical waste). Nothing bad will happen. You have to do this, as it is accounted for in inventory. You can't simply throw it in the garbage as I've seen people do. It won't come off your inventory and you will be short. People say "oh it was only 4 pills, how can my inventory come up short." But if you drop 4 amlodipine 10 mg tablets once a day, over the course of a year thats 1200 tablets. That about 13 bottles of 90 count Amlodipine 10mg tablets that retails for thousands of dollars. It freaking adds up. You have to be careful and ALWAYS STRONGPAK!!

If it's a generic, really, don't think twice, just strongpak it.

If it's a brand name medication, the best thing is prevention. You have to be careful. Tell your techs to be ultra careful whenever counting brand name drugs. Stress that the bottle costs thousands of dollars and dropping a pill is equivalent to losing a 20 dollar bill if they were at pickup. Once you explain it like that, you get the message through and they will be careful. However, if you still happen to drop that brand name pill, use your professional judgment. If the pill has no visible stain on it, and it looks fine, and you literally just picked it up off of the floor, then use your best judgment. If you drop it and someone steps on it, then do the right thing and process it as waste.

 

[wagrxm2000]

If it's a generic medication, then dispose of it according to the strongpak program if you work for CVS. I'm sure every chain has a strongpak equivalent (pharmaceutical waste). Nothing bad will happen. You have to do this, as it is accounted for in inventory. You can't simply throw it in the garbage as I've seen people do. It won't come off your inventory and you will be short. People say "oh it was only 4 pills, how can my inventory come up short." But if you drop 4 amlodipine 10 mg tablets once a day, over the course of a year thats 1200 tablets. That about 13 bottles of 90 count Amlodipine 10mg tablets that retails for thousands of dollars. It freaking adds up. You have to be careful and ALWAYS STRONGPAK!!

If it's a generic, really, don't think twice, just strongpak it.

If it's a brand name medication, the best thing is prevention. You have to be careful. Tell your techs to be ultra careful whenever counting brand name drugs. Stress that the bottle costs thousands of dollars and dropping a pill is equivalent to losing a 20 dollar bill if they were at pickup. Once you explain it like that, you get the message through and they will be careful. However, if you still happen to drop that brand name pill, use your professional judgment. If the pill has no visible stain on it, and it looks fine, and you literally just picked it up off of the floor, then use your best judgment. If you drop it and someone steps on it, then do the right thing and process it as waste.

Again just blow on it.

 

[trailerpark]

I don't blow on it, that's gross. If it drops on the floor I don't care what the situation is, it goes in the vial immediately. I'm not filling out a haz waste zippy bag- too time consuming.

 

[Dr Wario]

This reminds me of a patient we had see one of my technicians accidentally drop a counting tray on the floor, pick it up and clean it with alcohol, and then reuse it. The patient started throwing a fit saying we should throw the entire tray away and make a big scene until we had to remove him. I am really surprised my technician even bothered to clean the tray, most probably would have picked it up and kept on going.

 

[LabrattoRx]

excessive cleaning is an indication of psychological debilitation. trust me...

 

[NateRobinson]

This reminds me of a patient we had see one of my technicians accidentally drop a counting tray on the floor, pick it up and clean it with alcohol, and then reuse it. The patient started throwing a fit saying we should throw the entire tray away and make a big scene until we had to remove him. I am really surprised my technician even bothered to clean the tray, most probably would have picked it up and kept on going.

Well, to be fair, that's disgusting. The patient is right in this scenario in my opinion. How would you like it if someone did that to you for something you were going to ingest?

There is bacteria on the floor and even a second on the floor will transfer it to the tray. What you should have done is pretended like you were going to throw it in the garbage, used a different counting tray, then when the guy left, wipe it down with alcohol and reuse it.

If a patient can watch you count pills, you better be sure you're doing it the cleanest and most perfect way possible.

 

[Digsbe]

Everyone drops pills, heck under most counters near dispensing you'll probably see a bunch of random dusty pills that were left and forgotten there. If the patient is watching you count it out as they do sometimes. I'd not obviously take it from the floor to put it in the vial if they are watching you (but I don't trash it either). If it's a cheap non-control that's not really much of an issue if you can't find it. If it's any control find it, and always ALWAYS check your pockets or folds in clothing. I remember dropping a xanax once and looked for it and found it in my lab coat pocket. Check yourself before leaving the pharmacy, especially if you were counting anything that day. Never ever ever leave the pharmacy with a pill, especially a control. That's a big concern of mine and I usually double check my pockets to make sure I am not taking anything with me by accident. The law and employers may get very ticked, and if it's a control and someone wants to pursue you for diversion you could lose your license and possibly be charged (then again I can't imagine most places freaking out over a pill unless it was a common thing or you were suspected of diverting/abusing).

 

[knight on horse]

Have some decency and wipe them off

 

[pillpharmer14]

I'm just glad that this thread was titled in CAPS to ensure a prompt response. Strong internetting

 

[BenJammin]

I actually take bottles of pills already counted, go to the bathroom, and do a double count by pouring them on the floor. That's pretty normal right?

 

[trailerpark]

More normal to crush one on the toilet seat and snort it to check potency. Never go by the bottle exp date.