Question from a Patient - CVS Error

[Spinalpatient]

I'm not a pharmacist or student, I am a patient. I came across this site when I while trying to research. I wanted to ask if anyone could advise me on who I can contact about a recent problem I had at a CVS pharmacy.

I just had a prescription filled at CVS, I've been filling there for a few months after cancelling my membership to Costco. I have a weekly prescription for tylenol #4, qty 30. My doctor usually sends a script with 3 refills to for the month. It's a 7 day supply and usually lasts me around 10 days. I requested a refill, receive a call that it was ready about an hour later, then picked up the prescription the next day. I used the drive thru so I did not see where the prescription was stored.

I brought it home then put it aside until it was time to take it which was about 2 hours later. There was an obvious difference in the quantity, I counted and there were only 10. I thought maybe it was because they did not have enough (it's frequently on backorder) but usually there's a note to indicate a partial fill. I called the pharmacy to ask and spoke with the pharmacist. She asked me if there was an initial on the bottle (there was) and said it was double counted and that it was impossible for there to be a mistake. She was very rude and said that a lot of people lie and say they are missing tablets and if I continue to insist that something is missing, she would give me the additional quantity but I would no longer be able to fill there.

I stopped talking to her at that point and drove to the store. There were 2 managers behind the store counter and explained to them what happened. I made it clear to them that I did not care that about getting the extra quantity, if I needed more I could get another fill from my doctor, but that I was concerned that error had been made and the pharmacist refused to listen or entertain the possibility that it could happen. One of the managers went back to talk to pharmacist and then brought back the bag and said that she gave me the missing quantity but that they checked the stock and quantity was correct.

I told him again that getting the quantity was not what I was worried about but that there is some lapse in their process and they needed to look into it since the pharmacist was adamant that a mistake was not possible. He said the only thing for him to do was to keep the prescription and initiate action from LP but that it could be several weeks before that would be complete and would not have my medication. I told him to do it and he took the medication.

I also contacted the police department because my doctor's office advised me that I needed to make a report if I could. They would need that for them to rewrite the prescription (since I had outstanding refills).

I realize that there are some people that do try to get extra pills and lie, the pharmacist told me that and managers also said that, and the detective that came over (the police station is across the street) also said that. That was very frustrating to me because I never asked for the missing tablets and thought I made that really clear so it's not the same situation. The store said that they always keep scheduled meds locked in a cabinet and only the pharmacists has access to it. That even the techs never touch the scheduled meds, after the order is filled, it is then locked in a safe until the patient picks it up. I did not see where my prescription was stored this time, but I know that on other occasions it was not locked in a safe, it was sitting with the other prescriptions.

I don't count my meds, so I have no clue if this has happened before. I only noticed because there was were so many missing. For the most part, I didn't seem like anyone believed me. I asked for the number of the corporate office and was given an 800 number that was a pharmacy locator. I have no idea if the problem was intentional or accidental, but something went wrong and feel strongly that someone should look into it before something bad happens to a patient. I was only shorted tablets, but next time someone could get the wrong meds or something. If anyone can advise me of what I could do or who I could talk to at the corporate office I would appreciate it.

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[Spinalpatient]

I also wanted to add that at Costco, I anytime I picked up a scheduled med even though I had been taking it for years and pharmacist knew me, they never just put in the bag. After I paid they would send me back to the pharmacist he would check it, say "any questions today" then give it to me. I never had to worry about getting the wrong meds or that there was a mistake. The pharmacist at CVS has never done that, I only interact with the techs.

 

[argle_bargle]

It sounds like you kind of solved everything right? The pharmacy is going to look into it. Your doctor is aware of the situation and will be giving you a new prescription. I think the lesson here is to just check your RX before going home next time, and you're good to go.

 

[Corpseman]

I also wanted to add that at Costco, I anytime I picked up a scheduled med even though I had been taking it for years and pharmacist knew me, they never just put in the bag. After I paid they would send me back to the pharmacist he would check it, say "any questions today" then give it to me. I never had to worry about getting the wrong meds or that there was a mistake. The pharmacist at CVS has never done that, I only interact with the techs.

Just go back to Costco and move on.

 

[BMBiology]

You don't need Costco membership to use Costco pharmacy. By law, the pharmacy must be accessible to everyone.

Go back to Costco and move on. And yes, a lot of people lie about controlled substances. That is why they are counted twice.

 

[lcow2004]

I'm not a pharmacist or student, I am a patient. I came across this site when I while trying to research. I wanted to ask if anyone could advise me on who I can contact about a recent problem I had at a CVS pharmacy.

I just had a prescription filled at CVS, I've been filling there for a few months after cancelling my membership to Costco. I have a weekly prescription for tylenol #4, qty 30. My doctor usually sends a script with 3 refills to for the month. It's a 7 day supply and usually lasts me around 10 days. I requested a refill, receive a call that it was ready about an hour later, then picked up the prescription the next day. I used the drive thru so I did not see where the prescription was stored.

I brought it home then put it aside until it was time to take it which was about 2 hours later. There was an obvious difference in the quantity, I counted and there were only 10. I thought maybe it was because they did not have enough (it's frequently on backorder) but usually there's a note to indicate a partial fill. I called the pharmacy to ask and spoke with the pharmacist. She asked me if there was an initial on the bottle (there was) and said it was double counted and that it was impossible for there to be a mistake. She was very rude and said that a lot of people lie and say they are missing tablets and if I continue to insist that something is missing, she would give me the additional quantity but I would no longer be able to fill there.

I stopped talking to her at that point and drove to the store. There were 2 managers behind the store counter and explained to them what happened. I made it clear to them that I did not care that about getting the extra quantity, if I needed more I could get another fill from my doctor, but that I was concerned that error had been made and the pharmacist refused to listen or entertain the possibility that it could happen. One of the managers went back to talk to pharmacist and then brought back the bag and said that she gave me the missing quantity but that they checked the stock and quantity was correct.

I told him again that getting the quantity was not what I was worried about but that there is some lapse in their process and they needed to look into it since the pharmacist was adamant that a mistake was not possible. He said the only thing for him to do was to keep the prescription and initiate action from LP but that it could be several weeks before that would be complete and would not have my medication. I told him to do it and he took the medication.

I also contacted the police department because my doctor's office advised me that I needed to make a report if I could. They would need that for them to rewrite the prescription (since I had outstanding refills).

I realize that there are some people that do try to get extra pills and lie, the pharmacist told me that and managers also said that, and the detective that came over (the police station is across the street) also said that. That was very frustrating to me because I never asked for the missing tablets and thought I made that really clear so it's not the same situation. The store said that they always keep scheduled meds locked in a cabinet and only the pharmacists has access to it. That even the techs never touch the scheduled meds, after the order is filled, it is then locked in a safe until the patient picks it up. I did not see where my prescription was stored this time, but I know that on other occasions it was not locked in a safe, it was sitting with the other prescriptions.

I don't count my meds, so I have no clue if this has happened before. I only noticed because there was were so many missing. For the most part, I didn't seem like anyone believed me. I asked for the number of the corporate office and was given an 800 number that was a pharmacy locator. I have no idea if the problem was intentional or accidental, but something went wrong and feel strongly that someone should look into it before something bad happens to a patient. I was only shorted tablets, but next time someone could get the wrong meds or something. If anyone can advise me of what I could do or who I could talk to at the corporate office I would appreciate it.

I used to work at CVS and would say that the process is pretty robust. The initials on the bottle means that it was double counted (sometimes triple counted) and likely there was not a mistake in the counting. If patient comes in and argues about the quantity, yes sometimes we will give the extra pills (depending on the drug) but we always put an asterisk in the patient's profile to make a note and be sure to count the drug in front of the customer next time so they can't say we miscounted again. Otherwise we ask them to go somewhere else. Also the law does not require pharmacist to counsel you if its just a refill.

 

[doublehh03]

OP, mandatory annual inventory was performed on all controlled substances on 5/1. If you got your med after that, it would be like 5-10 minutes to determine whether you got the amount you should or not. Doesn't take a few weeks or LP to get involved.

 

[SClENCE]

It's amazing how every time someone is shorted it's on a controlled medication, despite them being double counted. They even offered to give you the 20 tablets which surprises me. I'm not sure what else you want them to do... kiss your feet and give you a giftcard? The police are aware, the doctor is aware, LP is investigating, and corporate has gotten a complaint. I think you have covered all bases...

That being said, Tylenol #4 is generally a slow mover and with controlled substance inventory being on 5/1 they should be able to verify the quantity by back counting the stock. Perhaps the fact the you involved the police drove the pharmacist to involve LP as opposed to conducting a self-audit, further dragging out the issue.

 

[dblock05]

I'm sorry to hear that. As someone else mentioned, the whole process is really robust and errors are really unlikely to happen for the most part.

What happened most likely is that whoever double counted it didn't realize it should've been 30 and completely lost focus....so the whole process of double counting failed. Its really unfortunate but we rely on our techs to make sure they are double counting when they make those initials.

 

[Corpseman]

I'm sorry to hear that. As someone else mentioned, the whole process is really robust and errors are really unlikely to happen for the most part.

What happened most likely is that whoever double counted it didn't realize it should've been 30 and completely lost focus....so the whole process of double counting failed. Its really unfortunate but we rely on our techs to make sure they are double counting when they make those initials.

Do you not double count controls? Just curious.

 

[PharmNerdMatt]

Having been on the other end of this... a couple of thoughts came to mind.

1. It is possible they actually found 20 extra pills and then lied so that they wouldn't have to admit a mistake.
2. I don't doubt you, but I have never heard of a pain patient caring more that there was a non-harmful error than that they were shorted pills.
3. A police report would be pointless as you would be reporting a non-crime to the police. Unless you are going to accuse someone at the pharmacy of stealing your medication, there isn't anything to report.
4. If your medication was double counted wrong, there isn't a process change that will fix this that CVS will be willing to do (would take 2 people counting to prevent this from happening)
5. The errors in process that cause shorted prescriptions (by this much at least) do not also cause wrong medication errors.

6. Does anyone else think that an RX that is filled every 10 days regularly is weird?

 

[BMBiology]

Make sure someone did not steal your medications.

This happens all of the times with controlled substances. People just leave them in an insecure place and next thing you know someone takes some of the tablets and they blame the pharmacy.

 

[PharFromNormal]

Make sure someone did not steal your medications.

This happens all of the times with controlled substances. People just leave them in an insecure place and next thing you know someone takes some of the tablets and they blame the pharmacy.

So much this. OP do you recall what happened with your bottle in the 2 hours you picked it up to when you took your first dose? I know it's very hard to imagine someone close to you stealing from you but in reality the majority of theft comes from those with easy access to your controlled substances. I'm not accusing or suggesting this happened but it's certainly something to be aware of in the future.

 

[lcow2004]

Make sure someone did not steal your medications.

This happens all of the times with controlled substances. People just leave them in an insecure place and next thing you know someone takes some of the tablets and they blame the pharmacy.

I would also make sure your tablets match their description on the bottle just to make sure it's really the right drug. Of course CVS would not make this mistake with their robust processes but I once knew a patient who was getting prescribed vicodin but his caregiver would steal them and replace them with some other white tablet that was same shape and wasn't until close inspection did they realize it was the wrong drug.

 

[maria1oh]

The inventory numbers might be off by 20 anyways bc I think some states allow you to estimate in 100 count bottles on c3-c5.

 

[WVUPharm2007]

Someone tries the "I didn't get enough" stunt once a week. I'd assume you were lying, too. Just the nature of the beast.

 

[sakigt]

Make sure someone did not steal your medications.

This happens all of the times with controlled substances. People just leave them in an insecure place and next thing you know someone takes some of the tablets and they blame the pharmacy.

This.

We had an OD come in and the family member came in and admitted he had been blaming the Pharmacy the last few fills thinking they shorted him when it turns out said intubated family member had been taking them.....

 

[Spinalpatient]

Thank you for the replies. No, I'm not looking for anyone to kiss me feet or anything like that. But a simple, ok we will look into it, and the conversation would have ended there, instead the pharmacist literally called me a liar. And said it was impossible. That's what is frightening to me.

I should add this is concerning to me because as a child, a pharmacist gave my father a the wrong meds and it was a toxic and I ended up having to call an ambulance. This was almost 25 years ago but seeing your father so sick that he couldn't even crawl from his bedroom to the living room is something that you don't forget. I'm sure the process of filling has improved since then but mistakes still happen.

This didn't harm me, but something went wrong with my prescription. I want to make sure it something worse doesn't happen to someone else.

 

[Spinalpatient]

It's a 7 day supply actually, not 10 days, mine just lasts approximately 10 days. On days that I have physical therapy I generally don't need it or not as often.

I understand that other people can steal them. I've received warnings from doctors in the past. But it's doubtful that happened. The only person around me at the time was my daughter who is 11. She would have no reason to take it and would not have had the opportunity without me seeing. It was in my purse until I took out to take it.

I don't know if it's prescribed more in my area or if stores just don't keep it in stock but Tylenol 4 is harder to find near me, it's frequently on backorder. After Costco, I tried target but it was on backorder for over week and half. I usually have to call and check. The 24 hour CVS near me would always say they just ran out.

 

[Spinalpatient]

It's amazing how every time someone is shorted it's on a controlled medication, despite them being double counted. They even offered to give you the 20 tablets which surprises me. I'm not sure what else you want them to do... kiss your feet and give you a giftcard? The police are aware, the doctor is aware, LP is investigating, and corporate has gotten a complaint. I think you have covered all bases...

That being said, Tylenol #4 is generally a slow mover and with controlled substance inventory being on 5/1 they should be able to verify the quantity by back counting the stock. Perhaps the fact the you involved the police drove the pharmacist to involve LP as opposed to conducting a self-audit, further dragging out the issue.

It was my choice to involve LP. The store manager gave me that option and took the prescription, which he said would be put in a safe that only he had access to. I choose to do that because the pharmacist was adamant that a mistake wasn't possible. As for the police report, I wasn't making accusations, but the nurse at my doctor's office instructed me to.

 

[Aznfarmerboi]

Most customers don't understand that Pharmacies have a lot of lost control in place due to prescription diversion problems, and drugs costing a lot of money.

For CVS, we keep an inventory of controls, strict rules to prevent theft like not being allowed to leave the pharmacy with your lab coat on, computer programs that are focused on prescription diversion that monitor a lot of variables... and heavily audited, credentials by pharmacy personal during each step of the dispensing process, cameras that watches certain station, and also additional cameras that are hidden and this small- "o", background checks on personals, and licensed pharmacists who are responsible for the inventory of the pharmacy observing the technicians, etc..

I can go on and on but chances of a person being shorted on controls is rare. It does happen because there is human involvement...

But most medications are handled with extreme diligence... with controls being scrutinized the most.

If an employee was to steal medication from your bottle... it is the worst way to divert drugs because you will go back and complain. If two, three, or four customers complained..., then we will know immediately someone is stealing.

If they were to steal a medication, it is usually something that is of worth in the markets, or easily abused, and during dispensing large amounts so it is less noticeable. It is easier to steal a few pills out of 120 tablets of vicodin versus 10 tabs out of 30 tabs of Tylenol#4.

When you think about that all pharmacies were required to do an inventory on May first... and no one dispenses Tylenol #4, most likely the fault lies with the customer.


11 year olds can steal prescription drugs because its the cool thing to do in school or social pressure from an older kid, etc. Although not likely, I have seen all sorts of things.

 

[BidingMyTime]

I stopped talking to her at that point and drove to the store. There were 2 managers behind the store counter and explained to them what happened. I made it clear to them that I did not care that about getting the extra quantity, if I needed more I could get another fill from my doctor,

This is another misconception that patients have. It doesn't matter if the doctor writes you a new prescription. Most states have a narcotic data base and you would have been logged as having gotten a 7 day supply, so any pharmacist that is aware of that, is not going to fill your prescription 6 days early just because you got a new prescription from the doctor. The DEA doesn't care what your doctor writes for, they care about days supply & excessive usage, and pharmacists must refuse to fill prescriptions based on what the DEA wants. Not to mention, most insurances will NOT pay for lost/stolen medications, so you would be passing cash, even if a pharmacist was willing to fill your prescription early.

So, if you are really shorted, then you absolutely must work it out with the pharmacy involved.

I also contacted the police department because my doctor's office advised me that I needed to make a report if I could. They would need that for them to rewrite the prescription (since I had outstanding refills).

Police departments do not take seriously, complaints that a pharmacy employee stole meds from someone. You might be surpised how often that happens. They will take your report, and that will be the end of it. Once again, you must work this out with the corporation.

It sounds like the pharmacist could have been much more tactful in handling your situation, and that would have probably went a long way in calming your angst. As it is, there are only 2 things that can be done in this situation 1) look into the circumstances and replace your medication if its determined that you were or at least possibly were shorted and 2) fill out an incident report and follow up with the technicians/pharmacists who handled your prescription. IF there is employee theft going on, then if that is discovered you can rest assured the employee will most likely be arrested. If its simple human error, there is nothing that can be done.

In the future, check your medication and make sure its what you expect BEFORE leaving the pharmacy counter. Doing so will enable most errors to be fixed immediately.

I don't count my meds, so I have no clue if this has happened before. I only noticed because there was were so many missing. For the most part, I didn't seem like anyone believed me. I asked for the number of the corporate office and was given an 800 number that was a pharmacy locator. I have no idea if the problem was intentional or accidental, but something went wrong and feel strongly that someone should look into it before something bad happens to a patient. I was only shorted tablets, but next time someone could get the wrong meds or something. If anyone can advise me of what I could do or who I could talk to at the corporate office I would appreciate it.
This didn't harm me, but something went wrong with my prescription. I want to make sure it something worse doesn't happen to someone else.

That's all well and good, but the fact is, humans make mistakes (even when automated counting is used, humans can still make mistakes in filling the machine or in typing the prescription.) There is NO possible way, NO possible protocol to prevent human error. It happens. Sometimes human error blows up space shuttles, sometimes someone dies from a pharmacist human error. It is tragic, we are want to do the best to prevent it, but the fact is, there is no way to prevent it. Most likely a simple human error was made in your prescription, there is nothing that can be done to prevent that in the future. I am amazed at the number of people who act completely surprised when they discover an error at the pharmacy. As if they themselves have never made an error. Are you perfect? Or have you done something completely stupid before and you have no idea why you did it? Humans mess up, and wanting them to be perfect, won't change the fact that they will mess up.

Really, what do you think the corporate office will do to prevent human error? Fire the 2 people who miscounted your prescription? Where do you think they will find 2 100% perfect humans to replace them? If there really were such a thing as a 100% perfect human, do you really think they would be working at CVS, and not like um, negotiating world peace or something?

25% of hospital admissions are believed to be iatrogentic....ie they are caused by a health professional's error (whether doctor, pharmacist, NP, etc.) So human error isn't going away anytime soon. Always double check all health professionals and ask questions about anything you aren't sure about.

 

[njac]

Tl;dr

You can use the Costco pharmacy without a membership.

 

[zelman]

Tl;dr

You can use the Costco pharmacy without a membership.

I think that varies by state.

 

[zelman]

25% of hospital admissions are believed to be iatrogentic....ie they are caused by a health professional's error

Iatrogenic doesn't necessarily mean an error occurred. It means it was caused by treatment. A patient may be hospitalized because of an adverse reaction to a drug that was prescribed properly and used incorrectly, or even one that was taken correctly and both cases would still be iatrogenic.

 

[BidingMyTime]

Iatrogenic doesn't necessarily mean an error occurred. It means it was caused by treatment. A patient may be hospitalized because of an adverse reaction to a drug that was prescribed properly and used incorrectly, or even one that was taken correctly and both cases would still be iatrogenic.

You are correct, I was half-asleep when I wrote that. There is no doubt though that many errors occur at all levels of the health service.

 

[trailerpark]

At Walmart we just check the cameras. Why can't cvs do that...?

 

[Corpseman]

I think that varies by state.

I don't know about that, but please correct me if I am wrong.

I thought Costco cannot prohibit access to federally protected things, which is why you can also use their eye and hearing centers for cheap exams.

 

[Sine Cura]

At Walmart we just check the cameras. Why can't cvs do that...?

The dynamic range and resolution on the surveillance cameras at CVS is really poor (blown out highlights, no fine detail) but there might be other "secret" cameras as mentioned above. You can easily tell if someone is lying about not getting a prescription (like if they went through the drive-thru and you can see their fat blob ass sitting in the car) but not whether someone doesn't know how to count or mixed up bottles of CII when filling (ex: I had a floater most probably mix up bottles of oxycodone/APAP 10/325 and 5/325 because it ended up being +100 on one and -100 on the other).

 

[zelman]

I don't know about that, but please correct me if I am wrong.

I thought Costco cannot prohibit access to federally protected things, which is why you can also use their eye and hearing centers for cheap exams.

Some states permit the requirement for membership to use a pharmacy. In MA it is illegal unless the pharmacy is operated to service members of a union. Every state is different. There is no federal right to access a pharmacy dept.

 

[zelman]

I don't know about that, but please correct me if I am wrong.

I thought Costco cannot prohibit access to federally protected things, which is why you can also use their eye and hearing centers for cheap exams.

Some states permit the requirement for membership to use a pharmacy. In MA it is illegal unless the pharmacy is operated to service members of a union. Every state is different. There is no federal right to access a pharmacy dept.

 

[Spinalpatient]

That's all well and good, but the fact is, humans make mistakes (even when automated counting is used, humans can still make mistakes in filling the machine or in typing the prescription.) There is NO possible way, NO possible protocol to prevent human error. It happens. Sometimes human error blows up space shuttles, sometimes someone dies from a pharmacist human error. It is tragic, we are want to do the best to prevent it, but the fact is, there is no way to prevent it. Most likely a simple human error was made in your prescription, there is nothing that can be done to prevent that in the future. I am amazed at the number of people who act completely surprised when they discover an error at the pharmacy. As if they themselves have never made an error. Are you perfect? Or have you done something completely stupid before and you have no idea why you did it? Humans mess up, and wanting them to be perfect, won't change the fact that they will mess up.

Really, what do you think the corporate office will do to prevent human error? Fire the 2 people who miscounted your prescription? Where do you think they will find 2 100% perfect humans to replace them? If there really were such a thing as a 100% perfect human, do you really think they would be working at CVS, and not like um, negotiating world peace or something?

If you read my post, I never said it wasn't a simply a mistake. The PHARMACIST said it was IMPOSSIBLE that they made a mistake, refused to check on it or do anything and said if I wanted to insist that there were tablets missing I was probably lying like a lot other people do. These were her words. Never checked the stock until supposedly the manager asked her too. I didn't actually see that happen. The manager told me this.

So really no need for these types of statements, no one expects that mistakes can't happen, except the pharmacist in this case.

Also I am in a state that has a database, but that's incorrect that a doctor can't rewrite a script. Insurance will not cover it, but yes a pharmacist will fill it even you just filled one if they contact the doctor and confirm the doctor is authorizing an early fill. This is what I had to do, the store still has my prescription.

And yes all the police did was give me a report, that's all I needed them to do because that's all my doctor required.

In saying that you are amazed at the number of people who are surprised to find a pharmacy error, I'm assuming that you have made several mistakes in in the past. I am being sincere when I say thank you for acknowledging that. This is not intended at all to sound disrespectful or imply that you don't have a good work ethic.

 

[Spinalpatient]

If an employee was to steal medication from your bottle... it is the worst way to divert drugs because you will go back and complain. If two, three, or four customers complained..., then we will know immediately someone is stealing.

If they were to steal a medication, it is usually something that is of worth in the markets, or easily abused, and during dispensing large amounts so it is less noticeable. It is easier to steal a few pills out of 120 tablets of vicodin versus 10 tabs out of 30 tabs of Tylenol#4.

When you think about that all pharmacies were required to do an inventory on May first... and no one dispenses Tylenol #4, most likely the fault lies with the customer.


11 year olds can steal prescription drugs because its the cool thing to do in school or social pressure from an older kid, etc. Although not likely, I have seen all sorts of things.

If you think about it though, is really the worst way to divert it. I not accusing the store of anything. But from what the pharmacist told me, she has receives complaints about missing quantity all the time, but had no concern that anything inappropriate had happened.

And if look through the some of the earlier posts, why would it matter if the they took several from a small quantity, or a few from a large quantity? The majority consensus is that the "fault lies with the customer" whether it was misplaced, customer is lying, or someone close to customer took it. Someone else posted "that's just the nature of the beast." So IF a store employee were to divert medication, why would it really matter who or how much they took it from? Being a pain patient you already have a strike against you it seems and it's unlikely that anyone is going to believe that customer anyway. I'm not trying to be snarky, I'm just trying to offer another view or something to consider.

And Tylenol 4 is dispensed quite a bit here. This is what I was told by 4 separate pharmacies, target and then 3 different CVS locations, including the store where this happened. Target had no stock for several weeks, they said the demand for it is so high now, they couldn't get it from their supplier because many doctors are no longer prescribing Vicodin. The CVS stores also told me the same thing because they were also out one week and had to call other stores to find it.

I'm sure there may be other 5th graders that would think it was cool. The kids at our school wouldn't. She hates any type of medication. More importantly as I posted, she didn't have the opportunity to take it without my knowledge. It was in my purse which never left my sight. We came home from school, she had a snack from Sonic, then we made homemade dog biscuits for a fundraiser her Girl Scout scout troop. I never left the kitchen because the oven was on.

 

[SClENCE]

We dispense 500 prescriptions a day and Tylenol #4 probably twice a week. Ultram on the other hand... we hand that stuff out like it's candy since hydrocodone went CII.

I know Tylenol #3 was on back order a few months ago though.

 

[Spinalpatient]

I get that people lie, I don't doubt that you have all experienced this. But please take this into consideration in the future....not all pain patients are junkies out to get a few extra pills. Some of us hate taking them.

I've had a traumatic spinal injury. I had a herniated disk at c3/4 which tore through my spinal dura, as result I have neurological deficits. I have had 2 surgeries so far, my last surgery was 5 months ago and I had a 4 level cervical surgery. 3 discectomies, C3-4 was fused, c4-5 & c5-6 replaced with implants, and at c6-7 a nucleotomy. I still need an at least 2 more surgeries. One to correct bulging discs at L3-4, 4-5, and herniated disc at L5-S1. Then another surgery to help correct deficits. These surgeries were not to treat pain, but to prevent paralysis as the most severe damage occurred at C3-4.

I go to rehab 3x a week along with speech therapy. Some days I checkups with up 4 different specialist in one day. After my last surgery luckily some on my pain was resolved. Some but not all, I still have chronic pain. Pills no matter what I take, still leave me in pain.

Not all pain patients want to have to take them, but do not have a choice. I had to take the maximum amount allowed of Vicodin and additional tramadol and soma or robaxin for years before my last surgery. It was hard psychologically to have to continue any pain meds at all after surgery because I was hopeful that I would be done with them.

My point with all this is that getting a few extra pills isn't going to make my situation better. It may be hard for some of you to believe that a pain patient doesn't care about getting missing meds but concerned about an error, but it's possible. I'm tired of pills, I'm tired of injections, of having my spine and body adjusted and manipulated or having to learn how to walk differently. So not all pain patients are going to lie for a few extra pills. If I really wanted additional meds all I have to do is ask for it.

 

[Deja]

seems like all of these would be avoided if the pharmacist and the patient changed their tone of voice when communicating....

another thing, yes doctor definately can rewrite the script, and yes insurance probably won't cover it unless you complain about it... but NO, I definately will not do an early fill on a controlled med (CII or CIII) even if your doctor authorized it unless he can give me a good reason for me to do it... alot of patients have this misconception that just because the doctor okd it, then i will be obligated to do it... not saying this applies to you, but i get a lot of people want an early fill and the doctor just oks it without any reason and expect me to do it, just no

 

[SClENCE]

I love when people say that they "hate taking pills" then their profile contains vicodin, tramadol, codeine, soma and they are standing at the counter telling you that they were shorted 20 pills and proceed to call the police while rambling on about how much pain they are in.

If you have such an issue just go to a different pharmacy. At this point you are just making an ass of yourself. You have no interest in "safety", you simply feel as if someone has done you wrong and will not let it go.

 

[owlegrad]

I have yet to ever have someone come up to the counter and tell me they love taking pills. I would probably get a kick out of that.

 

[WVUPharm2007]

I'll never forget the first time I had a dude busted with a fake pain story back when I was an intern. He comes in and gives us the same type of story like above about how he has debilitating pain and how he has some surgery scheduled. How he's on disability for it. Has to hire someone to mow his lawn, etc, etc. He hobbles out of the store. Literally that evening, one of the techs is walking home and takes a picture of him playing full court basketball in the park down the street. The pharmacist looked like she was about to explode in anger for being lied to.

OP...you need to understand that we've been made numb to this stuff and we HAVE TO rely on objective data. Yes, we know, you are in pain. Both real pain patients and people trying to win an Oscar for their performance come into our pharmacies and tell us this. We treat everyone equally, whether we think you are actually in pain or not personally. And every week someone tries to get over on us. So to protect ourselves and our patients, we do not inject out feelings into it at all. Everything has to be done without emotion using cold logic. And if the inventory disagrees with you, the inventory wins. Its that simple. Giving out extra controlled drugs just won't happen. The DEA arrests pharmacists every day for less. We get it, you feel wronged. We have no way of telling if you are a real pain patient or someone trying to get over. For all we know, you are someone trying to get more insight so that they can come up with a better way to work the system. It sucks that that's what its come to...but that's just how it is. If I'm you, I vote with my feet and go elsewhere.

 

[Spinalpatient]

Look said my piece, nothing I say is going to make you believe me. All I was trying to say was maybe look at the flip side once in awhile.

I did take the advice and called Costco after it happened, my state does allow us to use pharmacy if we aren't members. I think I miss understood the post about patient misconception of early fills. I read it as it can't happen, but now I think that what poster was saying was a pharmacist is under no obligation to even if doctor approves? I was confused because my Dr did call in a new prescription to the pharmacy at Costco and they filled it. They didn't ask questions, just said I had to pay cash or try to contact my insurance myself.

Maybe the difference is that they actually see me in person? I'm sure they get a lot of fake sob stories too. But they have seen me on heavy meds, hear that I'm having surgery but also see me come back with a 4 inch incision on the front of my neck and afterwards take less pain meds.

 

[Spinalpatient]

All I wanted was to ask if there was someone I could talk to at CVS other than the store. It's not about being wronged. It's trying to prevent another accident like my dad went through. Not ask someone to be fired and not get more pills or free gift card.

1)cvs processes are great, but Processes are only good if they are being followed
2) pharmacist could know nothing about what happened, some else in pharmacy diverted
3) someone outside the pharmacy could be diverting and pharmacist has no idea. I have heard of this, when j was in high school I worked at a photo lab and pharmacy was across from me and we chatted a lot. The pharmacist told me one of the assistant managers had been fired for breaking into pharmacy. I have no idea if this is still plausible today, this was 20 years ago.

Wouldn't you want to know if it was your store? All I wanted to know was of there was someone I could talk to, not ask for insider info. Guess not. Thank you for your time. I can't post tone, this not meant to sound abrupt and I apologize if it does.

 

[BMBiology]

All I wanted was to ask if there was someone I could talk to at CVS other than the store. It's not about being wronged. It's trying to prevent another accident like my dad went through. Not ask someone to be fired and not get more pills or free gift card.

1)cvs processes are great, but Processes are only good if they are being followed
2) pharmacist could no nothing about what happened some else in pharmacy diverted
3) some one outside the pharmacy could be diverting and pharmacist has no idea. I have heard of this, when j was in high school I worked at a photo lab and pharmacy was across from me and we chatted a lot. The pharmacist told me one of the assistant managers had been fired for breaking into pharmacy. I have no idea if this is still plausible today, this was 20 years ago.

Wouldn't you want to know if it was your store? All I wanted to know was of there was someone I could talk to. Guess not. Thank you for your time.

I don't know why you keep on linking what happened to your dad years ago to you being shorted 20 tabs. By making a big deal out of this, you are actually taking time away from the pharmacist and he is going to have less time checking drug interactions. In short, you are preventing him from doing his job.

If he had counted the tablets twice and if his inventory log showed there is no discrepancy, what do you expect him to do? Take your words for it?

Like I said, move on. You are already in pain. Find other things to do with your life.

P.S. Thank god I don't work in retails. I would probably have gone crazy by now.

 

[SClENCE]

What people don't understand is that companies have loss prevention units that are investigating 24/7 weather there are customer complaints or not. You have no idea what goes into loss prevention efforts. Just because there are not 5 LP officers standing in the pharmacy 24/7 doesn't mean that the pharmacist is the only person who can detect drug diversion.

 

[Aznfarmerboi]

What people don't understand is that companies have loss prevention units that are investigating 24/7 weather there are customer complaints or not. You have no idea what goes into loss prevention efforts. Just because there are not 5 LP officers standing in the pharmacy 24/7 doesn't mean that the pharmacist is the only person who can detect drug diversion.

This...

What big brother sees is incredible and more than what you can think of. They do this for a living and can lose their jobs if they don't make cases or something goes wrong...

 

[Sine Cura]

All I wanted was to ask if there was someone I could talk to at CVS other than the store. It's not about being wronged. It's trying to prevent another accident like my dad went through. Not ask someone to be fired and not get more pills or free gift card.

1)cvs processes are great, but Processes are only good if they are being followed
2) pharmacist could know nothing about what happened, some else in pharmacy diverted
3) someone outside the pharmacy could be diverting and pharmacist has no idea. I have heard of this, when j was in high school I worked at a photo lab and pharmacy was across from me and we chatted a lot. The pharmacist told me one of the assistant managers had been fired for breaking into pharmacy. I have no idea if this is still plausible today, this was 20 years ago.

Wouldn't you want to know if it was your store? All I wanted to know was of there was someone I could talk to, not ask for insider info. Guess not. Thank you for your time. I can't post tone, this not meant to sound abrupt and I apologize if it does.

Concern troll

 

[sosoo]

cvs is the worst pharmacy, so no doubt this may have happened. as others mentioned, go back to costco and save yourself some headaches. i would be surprise if you're not already blacklisted at cvs.

 

[wagrxm2000]

How has no one brought up the fact the person got #10 instead of #30 tablets? That to me is impossible. #10 is an odd amount, typically if there is a counting error its either within #5 or the person will get #30 instead of #90.

This person clearly is lying, her child stole them, or they just wanted to make up story. She didn't care about the missing tablets...oh please.

 

[SClENCE]

Typical...

1) I don't even need the pills
2) My doctor would happily write me a new script
3) I'm concerned about other patients despite me cutting in front of 3 other patients for my loud mouth complaint
4) I just called the police, corporate, and the state board before you could walk to the shelf to check the inventory
5) I will now proceed to write a novel about all of my conditions, surgeries, and how much pain I am in thanks to you

 

[SpartanLaser]

No offense but pain patients are the worst. I lost sympathy for 99% of them after I started checking the prescription drug monitoring program my state has every time before I fill a narc pain med.

For every 1 truthful pain patient, there are 10 liars. Today at work I had the sheet of records right next to them and they still keep denying they got their hydrocodone twice at walmart and rite aid already this month. Another one said his identical twin brother with the same name got the norco, not him when he tried to fill it 25 days early.

As a rule of thumb, the ones that cry the most about being shorted and being in a terrible amount of pain tend to be the ones that are making things up.

Not accusing OP, but this seems to be the general pattern. Also OP, just suck it up. They offered to replace the lost tablets. Why keep on whining about it. If u don't like the service, just move on to a different pharmacy. Most pharmacists deal with enough workload as is with little or no tech help, take the tablets and MOVE ON!

 

[M0df]

The 800 number for corporate office is the right number btw. There is a way to speak to a live person 8am-8pm I believe. You can also use email/online submission form.

Most pharmacists do take these complaints seriously as long as there is something behind it. They would go as far as giving you a tray and counting those pills before you leave the store if you want it done that way. The rest of the demands is not up to the patient really. There are internal checks in place to catch these things.