Pharmacist left pharmacy unattended. Then robbed

[The Doom & Gloom]

I went to the bathroom for several minutes to use the restroom, and I found someone robbing diabetic strips then left.
I am startled and in panic. We called the cops. What will happen?

I have no tech. We dont have a security guard so we couldnt stop him from leaving

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[BenJammin]

You know that you can't leave the pharmacy unattended right?

 

[The Doom & Gloom]

You know that you can't leave the pharmacy unattended right?

I have no staff. I needed to use the restroom. I know that its not a good enough excuse, but what happened had already happened.

 

[Momus]

I know several people got fired from leaving the pharmacy unattended. Hope this one is not on you lol

 

[The Doom & Gloom]

I know several people got fired from leaving the pharmacy unattended. Hope this one is not on you lol

That is what i am afraid of. Should I quit first? I am panicking

 

[Wickett]

That is what i am afraid of. Should I quit first? I am panicking

You don't have a sign saying you'll be back shortly and can't lock up real quick?

 

[The Doom & Gloom]

You don't have a sign saying you'll be back shortly and can't lock up real quick?

No we dont.... freaking out here. Gone for 2 mins, then saw some black dude steal a bunch of strips. Called the cops.

 

[bulldog1123]

No we dont.... freaking out here. Gone for 2 mins, then saw some black dude steal a bunch of strips. Called the cops.

Couldnt you have just made a sign with some paper, lock up and come back in 5 minutes?

 

[drakegrad2011]

No we dont.... freaking out here. Gone for 2 mins, then saw some black dude steal a bunch of strips. Called the cops.

Were the test strips actually inside the pharmacy or just inside the store? Did he jump over the counter (I'm assuming the door to the actually pharmacy has a code or lock on it)?

 

[The Doom & Gloom]

Couldnt you have just made a sign with some paper, lock up and come back in 5 minutes?

Discussing anything in regards to what should have happened is irrelvant. I am wondering if I should eiter resign or wait until they terminate me. It is bound to happen.

 

[The Doom & Gloom]

Were the test strips actually inside the pharmacy or just inside the store? Did he jump over the counter (I'm assuming the door to the actually pharmacy has a code or lock on it)?

We do have a flimsy lock but very easy to get into. Entered the pharmacy to grab supplies. On a brighter note, didnt touch any rx or narcotics.

 

[zelman]

I wouldn't expect you to be fired, but there will probably be some major documentation/write-up.

If you leave, you need to have an employee watch the pharmacy. Get a front store employee if you don't have a tech. There is a reason that pharmacies have security gates. People want in.

 

[The Doom & Gloom]

I wouldn't expect you to be fired, but there will probably be some major documentation/write-up.

If you leave, you need to have an employee watch the pharmacy. Get a front store employee if you don't have a tech. There is a reason that pharmacies have security gates. People want in.

our district have been terminating people due to LP issues. I think its very likley to happen. Should I resign? If so, how will i get reference letter?

 

[zelman]

our district have been terminating people due to LP issues. I think its very likley to happen. Should I resign? If so, how will be get former employee reference letter?

Never quit unless you have a new job lined up. If you're fired you can collect unemployment.


Also, employers won't give reference letters. They only confirm employment.

 

[The Doom & Gloom]

Never quit unless you have a new job lined up. If you're fired you can collect unemployment.


Also, employers won't give reference letters. They only confirm employment.

Omg thank you so much. I am screaming internally right now.

 

[Sine Cura]

Moral of the story here is don't do anything that makes it easy to terminate you. Security of the pharmacy is as black and white as it gets

 

[owlegrad]

Why do people hate black shoplifters?

I kid, I kid.

OP if you are being serious, calm down. Nothing is going to happen to you. In the future either lock down the pharmacy or get a manager to watch the counter while you slip off the bathroom.

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[The Doom & Gloom]

Why do people hate black shoplifters?

I kid, I kid.

OP if you are being serious, calm down. Nothing is going to happen to you. In the future either lock down the pharmacy or get a manager to watch the counter while you slip off the bathroom.

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Thanks. I was on the verge of having a panic attack.

 

[CetiAlphaFive]

We do have a flimsy lock but very easy to get into. Entered the pharmacy to grab supplies. On a brighter note, didnt touch any rx or narcotics.

lol, do you keep a perpetual inventory on CIII - CV or did you check the cameras?

EDIT:

Discussing anything in regards to what should have happened is irrelvant. I am wondering if I should eiter resign or wait until they terminate me. It is bound to happen.

Wow.
I don't understand why people do dumb things then respond rudely when someone doesn't immediately fix the problem they caused for themselves.

 

[The Doom & Gloom]

lol, do you keep a perpetual inventory on CIII - CV or did you check the cameras?

Yes and yes.

 

[bacillus1]

If they try to fire you, get a lawyer. They won't fire you after they get a lawsuit on not letting you use the restroom.

 

[BenJammin]

I have no staff. I needed to use the restroom. I know that its not a good enough excuse, but what happened had already happened.

That's your problem, not the problem of your employer or the state. If the board finds out you left the pharmacy unattended I would expect a huge fine. There was a pharmacist who did this in West Texas and they wanted to fine him $50,000. Doesn't matter if you get an employee or manager to watch the premise, you have to be there at all times.

 

[sosoo]

it happens with my partner. he stepped out of the pharmacy to help a customer, and another one jumped the counter to grab some bottles of control substances. he's still around. not his fault.

 

[Eichhoernchen]

That's your problem, not the problem of your employer or the state. If the board finds out you left the pharmacy unattended I would expect a huge fine. There was a pharmacist who did this in West Texas and they wanted to fine him $50,000. Doesn't matter if you get an employee or manager to watch the premise, you have to be there at all times.

Does this mean premises/building or strictly the pharmacy area? I am just curious, because with zero overlap how do people go to bathroom, etc in Wags, or CVS?

 

[Niosh]

Does this mean premises/building or strictly the pharmacy area? I am just curious, because with zero overlap how do people go to bathroom, etc in Wags, or CVS?

Check your state law. In Iowa it's fine to leave the pharmacy. The PIC designates who can be in the pharmacy with no RPh and you can't dispense, verify, some other stuff. If no one was available to watch the pharmacy then I'd just lock the place up and put up a sign.

 

[DokterMom]

No we dont.... freaking out here. Gone for 2 mins, then saw some black dude steal a bunch of strips. Called the cops.

The color of the shoplifter's skin is not relevant, so no need to post. As you note, the items stolen were diabetic test strips and not narcotics, so a bright spot.

Oh boy, you've gone and said that. Now the SJWs, white knights, and manginas been triggered. Here they come in their shortie shorts foaming at the mouth. One darkie ain't so bad. Hell, check out this poor gas station owner in Detroit.

Not foaming at the mouth, but why perpetuate a stereotype when it's not even relevant to the OP's question? And the purpose of your post is to...? Defend in advance someone's right to pre-judge?

 

[lord999]

Thanks. I was on the verge of having a panic attack.

I doubt any board would have you written up at all for this as we're human too and biobreaks are part of being human (and this was a real problem in the 1980s). I do not expect anything permanent (like termination) to be done to you as that's appealable. I do expect that you will probably have to fill out a bunch of incident reports, possibly go through some retraining that's legal department mandated, and probably get a write-up for not following x-and-y policy on this matter.

Don't panic, your anxiety makes the situation more disfavorable (but when this is all over, your anxiety is personal proof that you have a professional responsibility that you take seriously). You might even have grounds for illegal termination unless they can specifically demonstrate that the policy was on the books (can't be in MN or AZ as both have specific rules for "on-premises but not in the pharmacy" pharmacist and they are both lenient on reasonable situations like biobreak or in the case of a small hospital, coding situations). In the future, ask a staff to watch the pharmacy and/or lower the gate just like the above posters said.

Sucks that you're the ultimate victim of some thief's actions. One thing that you will get in serious trouble for if it happens, do not ever leave the CII safe keys out of your physical possession or reach. You are held responsible for filling out the DEA 106 loss report if you handed the keys to a tech, then they steal from the safe with them.

 

[CetiAlphaFive]

Does this mean premises/building or strictly the pharmacy area? I am just curious, because with zero overlap how do people go to bathroom, etc in Wags, or CVS?

There's a switch on the wall that raises and lowers the gate.

The color of the shoplifter's skin is not relevant, so no need to post. As you note, the items stolen were diabetic test strips and not narcotics, so a bright spot.



Not foaming at the mouth, but why perpetuate a stereotype when it's not even relevant to the OP's question? And the purpose of your post is to...? Defend in advance someone's right to pre-judge?

It's funny that we have two social extremes in the thread.
Carol "I swear I'm not racist" Alpha, and Dokter "Please don't say the word black around me, it scares me to even think about race" mom.
Who cares if the thief was any given race? Unless you have stereotypes to avoid or reinforce it shouldn't matter.

 

[BenJammin]

Does this mean premises/building or strictly the pharmacy area? I am just curious, because with zero overlap how do people go to bathroom, etc in Wags, or CVS?

Diapers? That's why I don't work in Oklahoma. They say that a pharmacist must be in the pharmacy area otherwise it must be shut down. Texas law says that the pharmacist can leave the dispensing area for 30 minutes as long as there is a technician on site and that you remain inside the building.

 

[CMUchicka]

it happens with my partner. he stepped out of the pharmacy to help a customer, and another one jumped the counter to grab some bottles of control substances. he's still around. not his fault.

I float to a store where robber jumped the counter while pharmacist and one tech were present. Store manager ran after robber but couldn't catch him. Nothing happened to pharmacy staff because it wasn't their fault.

First, i thought this may be techician/`pharmacy student posting but this is pharmacist

 

[ChalupaBatman86]

Have we learned nothing from the movie Clerks?

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[brianuseruser]

When I worked for rite aid I had a floater working alone on a weekend. One of the high-ups from corporate headquarters came by (they were in town for a golf tournament) to see the pharmacy. The pharmacy was empty because the floater went to the bathroom. Even in this horrible situation the floater wasn't fired. They ended up doing a store visit the following week and from what I heard, didn't bring up the incident again. I am pretty sure he got a write-up but definitely was not terminated. Don't resign.

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[Monsterdaddy]

At my Safeways I was always alone on weekends. And I have to give flu shots in a private room with no way to lock up (we usually have huge metal curtains that close up the pharmacy). I think some of the rooms had a camera but can you imagine if I asked someone to come to the pharmacy to watch it everytime I do a vaccination?!

I really don't see how they can fire you given the job circumstances. The business made a calculated play on expenses: small probability/cost of shoplifting vs. having a tech on duty at all times. Believe me, the shoplifting is a cost of doing business.

 

[mursepharmd]

lol, calm down dude. Not all pharmacies have bathrooms in the pharmacy, as long as you didnt leave the building you're fine. And who cares about test strips, people steal all kinds of shi t, and shouldnt that stuff be inside the pharmacy anyway? That would be stupid to leave a high dollar product on the shelves

 

[ancienbon]

Really. So a pharmacist is not allowed to use the bathroom for a couple minutes. Give me break. stop panicking over nothing

 

[doctorOP]

The color of the shoplifter's skin is not relevant, so no need to post.

The gender of the shoplifter is not relevant either, funny how that doesn't freak you out.

 

[zelman]

lol, calm down dude. Not all pharmacies have bathrooms in the pharmacy, as long as you didnt leave the building you're fine. And who cares about test strips, people steal all kinds of shi t, and shouldnt that stuff be inside the pharmacy anyway? That would be stupid to leave a high dollar product on the shelves

...it was in the pharmacy. That's the point of the thread.

 

[zelman]

At my Safeways I was always alone on weekends. And I have to give flu shots in a private room with no way to lock up (we usually have huge metal curtains that close up the pharmacy). I think some of the rooms had a camera but can you imagine if I asked someone to come to the pharmacy to watch it everytime I do a vaccination?!

I really don't see how they can fire you given the job circumstances. The business made a calculated play on expenses: small probability/cost of shoplifting vs. having a tech on duty at all times. Believe me, the shoplifting is a cost of doing business.

You probably shouldn't do vaccinations alone, even if security isn't an issue. If the patient faints you can't talk to 911 while helping them.

 

[npage148]

You don't usually 911 if a patient faints

 

[zelman]

You don't usually 911 if a patient faints

Why not?

 

[npage148]

Because it's Self limiting and rarely required emergency follow up (unless of course you let them fall and bump their head)

 

[DokterMom]

There's a switch on the wall that raises and lowers the gate.


It's funny that we have two social extremes in the thread.
Carol "I swear I'm not racist" Alpha, and Dokter "Please don't say the word black around me, it scares me to even think about race" mom.
Who cares if the thief was any given race? Unless you have stereotypes to avoid or reinforce it shouldn't matter.

Then we actually agree. It shouldn't matter.

The gender of the shoplifter is not relevant either, funny how that doesn't freak you out.

True! It would be nice if ordinary conversational English had a gender-neutral casual term that was as natural as "some guy" -- Oh wait! The OP's original sentence "and I found someone robbing diabetic strips" was perfectly adequate and complete.

 

[HouTX]

Then we actually agree. It shouldn't matter.



True! It would be nice if ordinary conversational English had a gender-neutral casual term that was as natural as "some guy" -- Oh wait! The OP's original sentence "and I found someone robbing diabetic strips" was perfectly adequate and complete.

why do we have to be PC about everything? walks like a duck, quacks like a duck.. it's a duck! OP merely stated facts.

 

[CetiAlphaFive]

Then we actually agree. It shouldn't matter.



True! It would be nice if ordinary conversational English had a gender-neutral casual term that was as natural as "some guy" -- Oh wait! The OP's original sentence "and I found someone robbing diabetic strips" was perfectly adequate and complete.

See, we actually don't agree, and I'll explain why.

You're asserting that we need to use "neutral" words, and that referencing the person's race or saying that they're black is somehow offensive.

I'm saying that describing someone as black is neutral, and that if you have a problem with it then you are the one that has a problem with their race.

 

[CetiAlphaFive]

You don't usually 911 if a patient faints

Hahaha, wow.

Attention everyone finding this thread years from now via Google search:

The advice npage 148is giving is incredibly bad.

 

[DokterMom]

See, we actually don't agree, and I'll explain why.

You're asserting that we need to use "neutral" words, and that referencing the person's race or saying that they're black is somehow offensive.

I'm saying that describing someone as black is neutral, and that if you have a problem with it then you are the one that has a problem with their race.

It's not offensive at all to state that someone is black. After you rang the PC alarm bells, I merely pointed out that the adjective was unnecessary and irrelevant in this context. The question is about the OP's behavior and consequences, not about the shoplifter. (If the OP were describing the robber to the police, it would absolutely be relevant and appropriate and in no way "not PC")

I also did not assert that we "need to use neutral words" -- merely that there was no benefit to not doing so in this instance.

 

[npage148]

Hahaha, wow.

Attention everyone finding this thread years from now via Google search:

The advice npage 148is giving is incredibly bad.

Please explain why? Patient syncopes out. Elevate feet and they come to a couple seconds later. Call 911 and then what? Have the back to normal patient wait 10 min, transport to the hospital and then full work up? Default calling 911 for syncope is also not part of many companies emergency procedures, only for complications. It needs to be documented and an incident report filed but it's usually not a 911 call

 

[ChalupaBatman86]

You call 9-1-1 because you are not qualified to diagnose their condition and also because why the f*** not? They can always sign a refusal and now you are more protected from liability.


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[BenJammin]

Why wouldn't you call 911? Is your employer going to send you the bill or something? Puh-leez

At my Safeways I was always alone on weekends. And I have to give flu shots in a private room with no way to lock up (we usually have huge metal curtains that close up the pharmacy). I think some of the rooms had a camera but can you imagine if I asked someone to come to the pharmacy to watch it everytime I do a vaccination?!

I really don't see how they can fire you given the job circumstances. The business made a calculated play on expenses: small probability/cost of shoplifting vs. having a tech on duty at all times. Believe me, the shoplifting is a cost of doing business.

Creepiest thing I've read all month long.

 

[ChalupaBatman86]

Why wouldn't you call 911? Is your employer going to send you the bill or something? Puh-leez



Creepiest thing I've read all month long.

Why don't we go back to the private vaccine room, you can take your shirt off, and we'll get some poking started. Is that your insurance card there? Oh, I see you've got the HMO Gold plan. We're going to get some mileage out of that card. Ever had your Zostavax? How bout pneumovax?


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