My Last day at CVS 7/16/09

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I have the exact opposite thing going when it comes to aging. No one believes that I'm 22, they all think I'm 26-27. Hell a few years back (I was 19), I pulled up to the local 7-11 and there were a few high schoolers standing around. They walk up to me and ask me to buy them booze (they gave me like $40 on top of the cost of the booze)

At this point, I'm just like...do I look that old? So I walk in, get the booze, the guy doesn't even ID me.

Maybe its because I don't like to shave, and just keep like a permanent 3-4 day fuzz going. 😕
 
so im just about to start my cvs internship here in kansas city missouri... so i guess its going to miserable?

also cant wait to start my first of five years at pharmacy school, then graduate and find a pharmacy job. these boards seem so depressing... is pharmacy NOT the way to go now??
 
BaLLnOuTRaGeOuS said:
also cant wait to start my first of five years at pharmacy school, then graduate and find a pharmacy job. these boards seem so depressing... is pharmacy NOT the way to go now??
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the five year plan? that's new to me...

...hard to say 5yrs from now...if wages become stagnant and we end up having some high-inflation rates...it won't be good...then mix in an oversupply...😱

I do know one thing...the two largest employers of pharmacists in the nation have significantly curbed their building plans and they're acquiring existing chains/independents...don't expect the growth of the 2000's...we'll look back it as the good ol' times. Dispensing will be streamlined reducing RPh hours/cost relative to the number of prescriptions.

The only hope for the profession is reimbursement for counseling SERVICES.

I say services because this is a service based economy...the manufacturing of goods is and will be outsourced to third-world countries, e.g. where do alot of generics come from?

Dispensing isn't exactly manufaacturing...but most of the process can be automated...think E-rx/central fill robots. All you need is one well-trained tech to fill a robot and one pharmacist to check incoming E-rx in a central location. How many E-Rx can an RPH check/hr? Med is sent to store...directly to pt...or maybe to handy-dandy kiosk in center of town..think it can't be done?

There are already kiosks in the US which dispense meds in rural areas.:barf:
 
BaLLnOuTRaGeOuS said:
so im just about to start my cvs internship here in kansas city missouri... so i guess its going to miserable?

also cant wait to start my first of five years at pharmacy school, then graduate and find a pharmacy job. these boards seem so depressing... is pharmacy NOT the way to go now??
Click to expand...

There are many things you can do with your PharmD. Don't let the doom and gloomers get you down. There is always room at the top. If you are a top student at CVS, they will hire you. If you decide to do a residency then your grades and hard work will get you in there.

My district is adding 1 store this year, one next year and has three more on the drawing board. People retire, people go part time to raise their kids, some people burn out. There will always be jobs for good people unless the economy goes completely in the crapper.

If you want to be a pharmacist, go for it. Look back five years and see if anyone predicted this job market would happen. Nobody knows what the future holds.
 
BaLLnOuTRaGeOuS said:
so im just about to start my cvs internship here in kansas city missouri... so i guess its going to miserable?

also cant wait to start my first of five years at pharmacy school, then graduate and find a pharmacy job. these boards seem so depressing... is pharmacy NOT the way to go now??
Click to expand...

Pharmacy is all what you make of it. Realize that I am still staying in retail, only going out on my own. Im changing the environment that Im in. I really do like pharmacy, however the model that is instilled at CVS or any other corporation makes pharmacy miserable at times. Go work for CVS, get your Pharm D and work at the chains. If you like it, then great. If not, look for some other "business" venture! Good luck
 
Old Timer said:
There are many things you can do with your PharmD. Don't let the doom and gloomers get you down. There is always room at the top. If you are a top student at CVS, they will hire you. If you decide to do a residency then your grades and hard work will get you in there.

My district is adding 1 store this year, one next year and has three more on the drawing board. People retire, people go part time to raise their kids, some people burn out. There will always be jobs for good people unless the economy goes completely in the crapper.

If you want to be a pharmacist, go for it. Look back five years and see if anyone predicted this job market would happen. Nobody knows what the future holds.
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I agree. Good advice, work hard get good grades.
 
Quiksilver said:
I agree. Good advice, work hard get good grades.
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Work hard, learn the material and get good grades. There are too many people who cram, test and forget. You will use this stuff you learn as a practicing pharmacist.
 
Old Timer said:
Work hard, learn the material and get good grades. There are too many people who cram, test and forget. You will use this stuff you learn as a practicing pharmacist.
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Good grades don't necessarily determine how much you know. If you suck at taking tests, especially these damned k-type tests, you might know a lot, but the test throws you off.
 
Sparda29 said:
Good grades don't necessarily determine how much you know. If you suck at taking tests, especially these damned k-type tests, you might know a lot, but the test throws you off.
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I agree with one caveat, you need good grades to get into a residency. If more people do that the competition for residency placement will increase and grades will play more of a role. Despite what you know, you need decent grades as well....
 
Old Timer said:
Good Luck to you. I wish you all the best. It's a shame to loose you because your boss was a j-off. There is no way you should be doing that many rx's w/o overlap. That means he stole hours out of your store and put them somewhere else or he banked them to look good for his boss.... Our loss is someone else's gain.....
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Yeah - I've had a suspicion for a long time that this particular behavior goes on a lot, not only with the pharmacist budget but the tech budget as well.

I've also seen a fair amount of management refusing to put two really good RPhs in the same store, even if they request a transfer. It's almost like they think they have to spread out the problem pharmacists.
 
rxlynn said:
Yeah - I've had a suspicion for a long time that this particular behavior goes on a lot, not only with the pharmacist budget but the tech budget as well.

I've also seen a fair amount of management refusing to put two really good RPhs in the same store, even if they request a transfer. It's almost like they think they have to spread out the problem pharmacists.
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with the potential "oversupply", these "problem" pharmacists will have to step their game up if they want to keep having a job. like somebody said, the cream always rises to the top.

if you are an efficient pharmacist, you should not have much to worry about in regards to job security (+1 if you are willing to relocate)
 
jachen84 said:
with the potential "oversupply", these "problem" pharmacists will have to step their game up if they want to keep having a job. like somebody said, the cream always rises to the top.

if you are an efficient pharmacist, you should not have much to worry about in regards to job security (+1 if you are willing to relocate)
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So what's an efficient pharmacist? I'm still training as a grad intern. So much to learn, so little time!
 
stevephhs016 said:
So what's an efficient pharmacist? I'm still training as a grad intern. So much to learn, so little time!
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don't worry, working at CVS will pretty much make you efficent :laugh:

during my heyday i would be ringing up the customers and somehow find time to rush back to the phone to write down a new rx order phoned in by a MD and then go back and finish the transaction. those were the days...
 
jachen84 said:
don't worry, working at CVS will pretty much make you efficent :laugh:

during my heyday i would be ringing up the customers and somehow find time to rush back to the phone to write down a new rx order phoned in by a MD and then go back and finish the transaction. those were the days...
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Yeah those were the days. Now you are by yourself ringing up the drive through and the counter, taking a new one on the phone, filling prescriptions and trying to eat your lunch/dinner/only food you have eaten all day, all at the same time.

Yeah I am sure CVS pharmacists wish for the days where they only had to do 2 things at once....ahhh the old days.
 
I love my job so far...We are not officially open yet, but i think we will do just fine 😉
 
Update:
We are doing well. Rx's are coming in; a few walk ins; and our 1st compound came in last week. Immunizations to follow!
 
metrarx said:
Sweet! Congrats.

How are you finding the transition to an independent?
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Its different...im used to running around, eating standing up, and not going to the bathroom...now i have time...i find myself standing while i eat! But the best part, i have time to talk to people...so far so good!
 
I just happened on this thread, and though it's belated, I'm rooting for you, Doctor M. Good luck.
 
Doctor M said:
Its different...im used to running around, eating standing up, and not going to the bathroom...now i have time...i find myself standing while i eat! But the best part, i have time to talk to people...so far so good!
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Go Doctor M!!

The way you're going, you might be able to work a couple year(s) extra before you retire. 🙂
 
I would love to hear how things are going. you are the second person who i know that left CVS and started their own shop. I opened my own shop about 2 years ago now. Things are going great and I am bringing my wife in to work with me next week.(also a pharmacist). Good luck with everything
 
fieldkj said:
I would love to hear how things are going. you are the second person who i know that left CVS and started their own shop. I opened my own shop about 2 years ago now. Things are going great and I am bringing my wife in to work with me next week.(also a pharmacist). Good luck with everything
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Things are great! The best part of it all is that we took no loans outs, and we should have all of our outstanding wholesaler bill paid off by october! Then we should have a pharmacy that can sustain itself! Things are good!
 
Doctor M said:
Things are great! The best part of it all is that we took no loans outs, and we should have all of our outstanding wholesaler bill paid off by october! Then we should have a pharmacy that can sustain itself! Things are good!
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Did u start from 0? Or did u buy a pharmacy or buy scripts?
 
museabuse said:
Did u start from 0? Or did u buy a pharmacy or buy scripts?
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started it from scratch! I had a decent size clientele at CVS so many will follow; and some wont. But that is ok, we will offer so much more than CVS can. We dont need to fill 300 or 400 daily. We will be content with 100-150 daily. And if we do more, then great! But so far so good!
 
Doctor M,

First off, I applaud you for having the courage and strength for standing up for yourself and starting one of your own. I'm glad to see someone in our profession succeeding because yes, we are all in this together. I believe the people that you help will receive better care than a retail giant could ever provide.

Here are 2 ideas that may help in the future after you've settle down.

1. I've seen other independents do delivery service (many older patients can't get out or lack transportation and this could be an extra source of scripts/revenue)

2. If I was going to have my own pharmacy...I always wanted to do MTM because that's what PharmD's do best....but I'm not familiar with how to get reimbursement for services. But here would be the plan.

On your slower days (or at slower hours)...you can schedule appointments for people who are diabetic or are on multi rx's and do the MTM thing. This will optimize the pt's medication use and strengthen your pharmD/pt relationship, increase foot traffic, and maybe more profits.

Please keep us updated. I would love to hear more about your future goods/bads stories.
 
BustyPharmD said:
Doctor M,

First off, I applaud you for having the courage and strength for standing up for yourself and starting one of your own. I'm glad to see someone in our profession succeeding because yes, we are all in this together. I believe the people that you help will receive better care than a retail giant could ever provide.

Here are 2 ideas that may help in the future after you've settle down.

1. I've seen other independents do delivery service (many older patients can't get out or lack transportation and this could be an extra source of scripts/revenue)

2. If I was going to have my own pharmacy...I always wanted to do MTM because that's what PharmD's do best....but I'm not familiar with how to get reimbursement for services. But here would be the plan.

On your slower days (or at slower hours)...you can schedule appointments for people who are diabetic or are on multi rx's and do the MTM thing. This will optimize the pt's medication use and strengthen your pharmD/pt relationship, increase foot traffic, and maybe more profits.

Please keep us updated. I would love to hear more about your future goods/bads stories.
Click to expand...

Delivery service is already implemented. MTM, well, certain insurance companies do pay but very limited. Dispensing, compounding, and immunization services is the way we are headed. We hope to increase foot traffic with immunization services.
 
Doctor M said:
started it from scratch! I had a decent size clientele at CVS so many will follow; and some wont. But that is ok, we will offer so much more than CVS can. We dont need to fill 300 or 400 daily. We will be content with 100-150 daily. And if we do more, then great! But so far so good!
Click to expand...

Fight the power you beautiful son of a bitch! I wish you well.
 
Good luck! The freedom and independence must be exciting!

Just curious, about how much capital does it take to start a pharmacy from scratch in an suburb/urban area?
 
koercive said:
Good luck! The freedom and independence must be exciting!

Just curious, about how much capital does it take to start a pharmacy from scratch in an suburb/urban area?
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A lot! realize my partner and I paid cash; no loans. about 125k-150k
 
CVS is just.. killing pharmacists, future pharmacists as well as techs..

HOW ARE THEY KEEP GETTING BIGGER AND BIGGER?????
 
ssullungy said:
CVS is just.. killing pharmacists, future pharmacists as well as techs..

HOW ARE THEY KEEP GETTING BIGGER AND BIGGER?????
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A little update for those of you following:
CVS/Caremark as you know merged a few years ago...It made it the largest chain drug store/PBM company out there...For many students who do not know what a PBM is i will tell you quickly. A PBM (Pharmacy benefit manager) administers the drug benefits for plan sponsors such as BCBS, Amerigroup, Huge corporations, etc...PBMs manage drug formularies, do DURs, have mail order facilities: In essence when ever a drug store store submits a claim, it goes to the PBM and the PBM spits back an answer such as a price for the pt and what the pharmacy gets reimburses or no, the plan sponsor will not cover. Now, if you wanna read more about PBM's and reimbursement, which i think you all should now, go to google and just google Pharmacy benefit managers.

Now here is the kicker...We have just learned that CVS/Caremark is going to require many caremark pts to get their prescriptions filled at CVS or CVS/caremark mail order facilities...WOW, Last time I remember, caremark and CVS are one company...so how can a company this large get through the FTC antitrust laws? Cause let me tell you something, if they cant win their customers with service and price, they are just gonna steal them back, illegally! Thats right, if you have caremark you will probably have to go to CVS for your scripts...Is just eats me up inside that the FTC has allowed this to happen...And trust me, it wont last long, maybe a few years...but that is just dirty. So let me get this straight, CVS, the drug store, fills an rx for a caremark pt. Caremark pays the store whatever tiny amount they pay and then caremark turns around and charges the plan sponsor AWP or whatever the negotiated price is...SO for a drug whose AWP is $100 and WAC is $25, caremark will pay the CVS store a total of $30, charge the plan sponsor the AWP price of $100 and keep the the $70. So you see, CVS/Caremark made out on that deal...Cause if the pt say goes to walgreens or my store, CVS/caremark is losing out on that $30.

Do you all see what im saying...Any pro-CVS pharmacists on here: I'd like for you to explain this one to me, and dont tell me its saving the plan sponsor money, cause its not...

Dr. M

BTW, my business partners' wife has caremark though her employer...my partner is on her ins...He has to go to CVS for any rx he needs...He and I own our own pharmacy..how fu--ing messed up is that??????
 
I thought the antitrust ball was already rolling on them. I could be wrong though. It happens.
 
The retail + PBM sounds great but not in actual practice so far. This year, Caremark side of CVS/Caremark has lost billions in contracts (just google it) to its PBM competitors (Medco, Express Scripts). Why? Because Caremark changed its focus to make money for CVS. For example, it benefits CVS that Caremark patients can pick up their med (and hopefully, toilet paper, soda, etc) at CVS but insurance companies don't care about that. They care about cost saving programs (e.g. drug compliant program, generic drugs, etc) and customer service. Caremark used to focus on those things until it merged with CVS.
 
Doctor M said:
BTW, my business partners' wife has caremark though her employer...my partner is on her ins...He has to go to CVS for any rx he needs...He and I own our own pharmacy..how fu--ing messed up is that??????
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That's misleading. If Caremark did not merge with CVS, your partner still wouldn't be able to pick up med at his pharmacy. He would have to go thru Caremark mail order pharmacy.
 
ForcedEntry said:
I thought the antitrust ball was already rolling on them. I could be wrong though. It happens.
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The federal government is bringing CVS/Caremark into court. I don't know all the information, though.
 
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