Please List Your Problems with Pharmacy

[STAR3URY]

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Hey guys,

I'm working on a research project and would like some of your input. For those that work in retail, independant, hospital, etc. pharmacies; can you please list some of the things that you find may be simplified in your work process (eg. verifying, filling, counseling). It can be anything that you feel should be changed in our profession to make it a more enjoyable work experience. Thank you in advance for your input.

 

[Sparda29]

Not having to call doctor about every little mistake in prescribing. For example yesterday, doctor writes for Lumigan 0.03% and says the patient will be bringing in their own med. Patient brings in the med and it's Lumigan 0.01% (with the CVS label still attached, with the same doctors name on it).

That and I'd love if we stopped allowing patients to take home meds.

 

[NateRobinson]

I hate how these pharmacy kids from LIU in their 6th year think shump 4 Dudley nd pik is bad deal

 

[STAR3URY]

Not having to call doctor about every little mistake in prescribing. For example yesterday, doctor writes for Lumigan 0.03% and says the patient will be bringing in their own med. Patient brings in the med and it's Lumigan 0.01% (with the CVS label still attached, with the same doctors name on it).

That and I'd love if we stopped allowing patients to take home meds.

You know what the problem is...95% of these doctors allow their secretaries to e-scribe and they don't even know that multiple strength exist etc. thats why a lot of mistakes happen. This should not be allowed.

 

[Sparda29]

I hate how these pharmacy kids from LIU in their 6th year think shump 4 Dudley nd pik is bad deal

It is a bad deal. The Knicks need Shumpert for defense. Kid has a lot of potential.

You know what the problem is...95% of these doctors allow their secretaries to e-scribe and they don't even know that multiple strength exist etc. thats why a lot of mistakes happen. This should not be allowed.

Secretaries don't e-scribe with our CPOE system, if anything the doctor calls the nurse at the hospital and they enter the orders into the system on behalf of the doctor.

 

[ancienbon]

Hey guys,

I'm working on a research project and would like some of your input. For those that work in retail, independant, hospital, etc. pharmacies; can you please list some of the things that you find may be simplified in your work process (eg. verifying, filling, counseling). It can be anything that you feel should be changed in our profession to make it a more enjoyable work experience. Thank you in advance for your input.

Drive Thru, Angry customers blaming staff for things they have no control over, Immunization while being busy, Md handriting/unclear drugs, 25 dollars transfer coupon

 

[wucool33]

Not having to call doctor about every little mistake in prescribing. For example yesterday, doctor writes for Lumigan 0.03% and says the patient will be bringing in their own med. Patient brings in the med and it's Lumigan 0.01% (with the CVS label still attached, with the same doctors name on it).

That and I'd love if we stopped allowing patients to take home meds.

Actually u should call in this case. CVS could have made a mistake... With how busy retails are, that's an easy mistake to make. Sometimes the mistake is not even caught on the refills.

 

[Rockinacoustic]

I hate how these pharmacy kids from LIU in their 6th year think shump 4 Dudley nd pik is bad deal

Because it is.

 

[naseuy]

Requirements for standardized, and certified technicians should be mandatory.

 

[Sparda29]

Requirements for standardized, and certified technicians should be mandatory.

Really? I think those pharmacy tech schools are a ripoff. Every time we get techs who went to one of these schools and got certified, I gotta make them unlearn everything they learned there and teach them the way I want them to do things.

 

[naseuy]

Really? I think those pharmacy tech schools are a ripoff. Every time we get techs who went to one of these schools and got certified, I gotta make them unlearn everything they learned there and teach them the way I want them to do things.

I do not advocate for these schools (for the most part they're a waste of time and money), but I do think that they should at least pass some sort of test to demonstrate that they have a basic understanding of data entry, calculations, and law.

 

[Ackj]

Not having to call doctor about every little mistake in prescribing. For example yesterday, doctor writes for Lumigan 0.03% and says the patient will be bringing in their own med. Patient brings in the med and it's Lumigan 0.01% (with the CVS label still attached, with the same doctors name on it).

That and I'd love if we stopped allowing patients to take home meds.

Pretty sure 0.03% was discontinued. Maybe the doc did order that, but CVS just subbed it on their own. You know, they didn't call about every little mistake in prescribing

 

[MackandBlues]

There is a technician test that some states require technicians to pass before being employed in a pharmacy, PCTB. Hence if they pass this test they are "certified" regarldess if they went to a special school. All states should make the PCTB test mandatory.

 

[Sparda29]

Pretty sure 0.03% was discontinued. Maybe the doc did order that, but CVS just subbed it on their own. You know, they didn't call about every little mistake in prescribing

Honestly if it was up to me, I'd just say **** the Lumigan and autosub it to Xalatan.

 

[Angela1234]

Everything. Rude, nasty customers. People threatening physical violence. People who rob pharmacies. People who bring in forged prescriptions. The company that doesn't hire security guards to keep us safe. Not being able to take a lunch and having hardly any time to use the restroom. Having to work 14 hour shifts.

 

[nextyearrx]

Yes, Drive thru should be banned for many reasons. It is not lessening pharmacy's work but rather make it more stressful. And if people taking prescription drugs have no motivation to walk through the register inside the pharmacy, it's not good for their health.😳 I remember working at a drive thru pharmacy, I had to repeat everything twice when the patient on drive thru could not hear b/c of glitch on phone.

Also, one more thing is generic equivalence. I have had hard time knowing some brand/generic drugs are equivalent to what drugs. Like Cartia XT and diltiazem are same?? something like that.

Also, Rejection by insurance companies is a major problem. Every rejection, patients think it's pharmacist's fault not the overdose he has been on..

 

[npage148]

Know it all student

"clinical pharmacists"'who think they are better than the rest

People who complain endlessly about the same issues but refuse to do anything about it because they like the money

Back ordered c2s

 

[BidingMyTime]

-Drive thru should be banned. It is almost impossible to give a decent counsel, it is difficult to verify any information, and leads to privacy violations because the whole parking lot and those in line can hear everything{/quote]

True, but I'm always so happy when someone picking up Lindane or someone who is retching their guts out, decides to go through drive-through instead of coming in.

 

[358265]

Hey guys,

I'm working on a research project and would like some of your input. For those that work in retail, independant, hospital, etc. pharmacies; can you please list some of the things that you find may be simplified in your work process (eg. verifying, filling, counseling). It can be anything that you feel should be changed in our profession to make it a more enjoyable work experience. Thank you in advance for your input.

What's wrong with pharmacy these days? Everything about retail. In fact, the idea of a pharmacy service going "retail" should not even be an option!

 

[npage148]

Ok, well just call it community pharmacy and pretend its different. Inpatient also sounds better than hospital. We need a snazzy name for mail order. Maybe distance dispensing pharmacy or ddp for short

 

[Hello2000]

-Drive thru should be banned. It is almost impossible to give a decent counsel, it is difficult to verify any information, and leads to privacy violations because the whole parking lot and those in line can hear everything

They should put a phone handset at the window for the driver to pick up when he is collecting his meds.

 

[wucool33]

They should put a phone handset at the window for the driver to pick up when he is collecting his meds.

One of the stores I worked at have one, but no one ever uses it...

 

[Sparda29]

Those are some pretty weird drive thru set ups. Around here, the person drives up to the window, pharmacist opens the window and they talk there.

 

[297point1]

We need a snazzy name for mail order. Maybe distance dispensing pharmacy or ddp for short

Postal Pills?
Meds by Mail?
5-FU from UPS?

Funny how when the USPS announced they were ending most Saturday mail services, they said that mail order prescriptions would continue to be delivered on Saturdays, justifying the decision with a quote along the lines of "one out of six mail order prescriptions are delivered on Saturdays".

Isn't one out of six EVERYTHING delivered on Saturdays?

Chalk one up for the mail order lobbyists.

 

[Ackj]

Postal Pills?
Meds by Mail?
5-FU from UPS?

Funny how when the USPS announced they were ending most Saturday mail services, they said that mail order prescriptions would continue to be delivered on Saturdays, justifying the decision with a quote along the lines of "one out of six mail order prescriptions are delivered on Saturdays".

Isn't one out of six EVERYTHING delivered on Saturdays?

Chalk one up for the mail order lobbyists.

I can see that assumption, but I'm sure the volume varies a bit by day. You wouldn't say that one out of seven prescriptions are filled on a Sunday for pharmacies open all week. Weekends are definitely slower than a Monday, so there's definitely a skewed distribution.

 

[owlegrad]

I can see that assumption, but I'm sure the volume varies a bit by day. You wouldn't say that one out of seven prescriptions are filled on a Sunday for pharmacies open all week. Weekends are definitely slower than a Monday, so there's definitely a skewed distribution.

I was thinking the same thing. Running mail 6 days a week does not mean an even distribution of mail all 6 days.

When did mail stop running on Sat? I feel very out of the loop on this. I still get mail on Sat,

 

[rph3664]

Tomorrow will be the 1-year anniversary of my retirement from the active practice of pharmacy, and this thread just reinforces that I made the right decision.

 

[njac]

Actually u should call in this case. CVS could have made a mistake... With how busy retails are, that's an easy mistake to make. Sometimes the mistake is not even caught on the refills.

Oh, like the Asa 325mg po QID I found on a dialysis patient admitted for go bleed?

 

[kwakster928]

Where should I start.... This is strictly related to hospital practice.

1. Drug Shortages - it never ends.

2. Calling the prescriber about something so insignificant. e.g. Prescriber writes Aspirin 325 supp RC Daily. - GRRRRR... Although if you have a good relationship with your house staff, this can be fixed without the need of alerting them. They also appreciate pharmacist not calling them for every mistake.

3. Nurses not looking in all the places before calling up for missing doses - I love our nurses, but sometimes they do drive me crazy. But, DO NOT MESS WITH NURSES!

4. Incompetent technical staff - if they are not good at what they do, it is not even worth having one.

5. Incompetent or not interested or clueless pharmacy student - either they need to wake up quick or they are in world of trouble. I get scared sometimes when I think about some students will be practicing pharmacy in couple years.

6. Demanding old school physicians who still think they are the king of the healthcare - although small they still do exist.

7. Incoherent medication reconciliation or half assed attempt at med rec - why bother?

8. A colleague who does not pull his/her weight - they know every trick in the world to do the least amount of work and leave work early. It is simply amazing to see the stuff they pull.

9. Clueless managers or DOPs who implement needless protocols without thinking about staffing and additional workload they put on the staff.

I am sure I forgot something but...

Pharmacy is still my beloved profession, and I go into work everyday with the pride of my chosen profession.

 

[Sparda29]

Where should I start.... This is strictly related to hospital practice.

1. Drug Shortages - it never ends.

2. Calling the prescriber about something so insignificant. e.g. Prescriber writes Aspirin 325 supp RC Daily. - GRRRRR... Although if you have a good relationship with your house staff, this can be fixed without the need of alerting them. They also appreciate pharmacist not calling them for every mistake.

3. Nurses not looking in all the places before calling up for missing doses - I love our nurses, but sometimes they do drives me crazy. But, DO NOT MESS WITH NURSES!

4. Incompetent technical staff - if they are not good at what they do, it is not even worth having one.

5. Incompetent or not interested or clueless pharmacy student - either they need to wake up quick or they are in world of trouble. I get scared sometimes when I think about some students will be practicing pharmacy in couple years.

6. Demanding old school physicians who still think they are the king of the healthcare - although small they still do exist.

7. Incoherent medication reconciliation or half assed attempt at med rec - why bother?

8. A colleague who does not pull their weight - they know every trick in the world to do the least amount of work and leave work early. It is simply amazing to see the stuff they pull.

9. Clueless managers or DOPs who implement needless protocols without thinking about staffing and additional workload they put on the staff.

I am sure I forgot something but...

Pharmacy is still my beloved profession, and I go into work everyday with the pride of my chosen profession.

So many people at my hospital have this figured out. They stand at their computer and they make it look like they are working hard by constantly having the phone to their ear or typing away bull**** in wordpad, and they get away with it because when a STAT order or a nurse comes down with something they want immediately, they just grab it and do it since they weren't doing anything in the first place.

Meanwhile, people like me who are order entry/verification robots (the label printers are constantly spitting out labels when I'm there, to the point that when I get through a bunch of orders, the labels are piling up on the floor and the roll of label paper outside the printer is like 20 feet long.) So when a nurse comes down with a fast track/ED or narcotic pickup and interrupts me and I tell them to wait until I finish what I'm doing, I get in trouble.

 

[Beacon]

I do not advocate for these schools (for the most part they're a waste of time and money), but I do think that they should at least pass some sort of test to demonstrate that they have a basic understanding of data entry, calculations, and law.

Considering the wage that the chains are paying pharmacy technicians, don't you find that a little ridiculous?