MY new JOB

[lostuc]

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So.... i started at kaiser this week..... and let me tell you about this crazy long orientations that they put u through.... anyway.... I worked at an independent pharmacy this past year where i went to college and from that i gained a LOT of experience. I basically did everything from dealing with patients, entering in prescriptions, pulling medications, ordering and stocking rx prescriptions and all the good stuff basically doing a tech job but wihtout the license🙂 anyway everything was very hands on...i couldnt begin to tell you how much i learned.
and NOW, kaiser. MY job is to greet patients take their perscription ask them if they have allergies. and then go through the line up grab a medication and ring up the copay. and...some data entry. DID I MAKE A MISTAKE?? should i have gone to longs or cvs or savon?? they all called me back for positions but i chose kaiser for the name mostly because they are so well known and i heard they treated their employees well...and i thought id get more experience....im soooo frustrated cause i feel like my learning curve as come to a stand still...anyone have good words for me??!!???
Sorry, im mainly venting. Im in California sooo i mean the cost of living is high...other wise id be back up working that pharmacy in a heartbeat rather than being home for this🙁

 

[sdn1977]

I've never worked at Kaiser, but I know its very heirarchial. You do what you're supposed to do all day long. You move "up" only when there is an opening & only if you jump through all those hoops. Holidays, vacations & other time off is based on this as well.

It can be a good place to work, but only you can decide if you want to put up with starting at the bottom.

Are you a pharmacy student, an intern, a tech or a pharmacist? If you're a student or an intern....then you would have the opportunity to go to your supervisor & ask them to give you more exposure. However, if you're a tech or pharmacist, you're hired for a particular job & that is the job you do until another, more likeable one to you, come open.

Good luck!

 

[lostuc]

Im a pre-pharm student finishing up some pre-reqs at a community college. My main goal of working in a pharmacy is being exposed to the medications...know what theyre for..theyre sideaffects...knowing my patients...being able to learn new things every day, not rushing through my job to meet a quota. I almost feel like kaiser doesnt even have time to really speak to any of their patients because by the time the patient gets up there...they just want their meds because theyve been standing in line for about a good half hour!
A small savon had called me and asked me to work with just two pharmacist and two clerks....because they only do about 100-150 rx's a day... and i gave that up....should I have chose that??
All I want is a place where I can get the most out of my job. I find all aspects of pharmacy to be very pleasing. From the moment that you see a script and being able to read and understand the dosage, what its for to filling it and being able to have relations with your patients... your neighborhood pharmacy i should say... you wait for hours to talk to doctors... i feel like the pharmacy should be like home a personal place not a shopping center....do those places not exist?

 

[mustangrolla]

Wow, thanks for posting this. I was actually hoping to work at a pharmacy at Kaiser Permanente but since you mentioned "all" the duties that you have, maybe I really shouldn't. If one is looking for a lot of hands-on experience, independent pharmacies seem like the way to go. When I worked at a CVS pharmacy, all I did was try to find medication for impatient patients and give excuses as to why their RX is taking so long to fill. I never got to do the things tech would do. I despise working at a job that requires no brain activity. I rather be in the back and feel like i'm actually "working".

 

[sdn1977]

If you are all pre-pharmacy students....look at each job you have as an experience within pharmacy. They offer you an opportunity to see the "dimension" within whatever scope of practice you are working in - retail or hospital.

You need to be able to find the positives - Kaiser has developed some remarkable inpt models for clinical services (similar to what Kwizard knows with the VA) & really does move lots of prescriptions in their retail setting (its like the Disneyland of rx movement......there is a system which works with huge volumes). So...take the good from that experience & recognize the bad. Don't judge it or think the whole experience is bad - just take the bad with the good.

Then.....move on to your next professional experience & see how that differs. Someone mentioned that all you want is "to be able to get the most out of the job". Well..you are getting the most. It may not be the best, but it is the most that experience offers you. It is naive to think there is a perfect job because all our perceptions of what is perfect differs.

When you have lots of experiences, you are able to write that application essay from a knowledgable perspective & have a bit more insight into what you really want to do with your education. That helps with developing a broader perspective on where medication management is headed & how phamacists can help.

Now....if you want to stay at being a tech....then you need to find a practice setting which fits the kind of person you are.

Good luck!

 

[pakcw]

So.... i started at kaiser permanente this week..... and let me tell you about this crazy long orientations that they put u through.... anyway.... I worked at an independent pharmacy this past year in SB where i went to college and from that i gained a LOT of experience. I basically did everything from dealing with patients, entering in prescriptions, pulling medications, ordering and stocking rx prescriptions and all the good stuff basically doing a tech job but wihtout the license🙂 anyway everything was very hands on...i couldnt begin to tell you how much i learned.
and NOW, kaiser. MY job is to greet patients take their perscription ask them if they have allergies. and then go through the line up grab a medication and ring up the copay. and...some data entry. DID I MAKE A MISTAKE?? should i have gone to longs or cvs or savon?? they all called me back for positions but i chose kaiser for the name mostly because they are so well known and i heard they treated their employees well...and i thought id get more experience....im soooo frustrated cause i feel like my learning curve as come to a stand still...anyone have good words for me??!!???
Sorry, im mainly venting. Im in California sooo i mean the cost of living is high...other wise id be back up in santa barbara working that pharmacy in a heartbeat rather than being home for this🙁

Isn't the cost of living expanses in Sb also very high? The environment is better in kaiser. Stick with Kaiser. And you are not the only one who is going through as a pharm tech. It is tough to live only how much pharm tech is getting paid speically in CA. Plus you want to study to upgrade your career? Lol! not many people have that option even if they are willing to.
I did same thing as you did, packed and got into my parents home for free rent. i wish you good luck for your classes.

 

[lostuc]

That is true. I think i took a judged the situation really quickly. There are a lot of people at kaiser who have been there for years and years! and so there has to be good things about them!
Thanks sdn1977 for all of your advice! I was really stressed that day and kind of fell apart...but as i continue to do my training im realizing that I can make the situation what i want it to be! i appreciate all of your responses!