Questions People Ask Pharmacists

[DoctorStrong]

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Hi all,

I will start working in an independent pharmacy in 3 weeks, what is the questions you get asked and how you answer them? please share your success secrets as a retail pharmacist.
lets make this thread serious and helpful source for all new retail pharmacists.

Thank you

 

[zelman]

Hi all,

I will start working in an independent pharmacy in 3 weeks, what is the questions you get asked and how you answer them? please share your success secrets as a retail pharmacist.
lets make this thread serious and helpful source for all new retail pharmacists.

Thank you

Are you a pharmacist?

 

[rxkrafted]

Where is the restroom?
It is out of order.

 

[DoctorStrong]

Are you a pharmacist?

Yes , I've been working in hospitals for a long time, now moving to retail.

 

[wagrxm2000]

Um, I get questions about my customers medications and I answer them.

What exactly are you looking for here?

 

[PharmtoCS]

Why did my copay go up?
Why do I have a copay?

 

[mentos]

Where is the toilet paper, groceries, pet food etc?

 

[olabrador23]

Yes , I've been working in hospitals for a long time, now moving to retail.

if you could also share your journey from hospital to retail, that would be great. A lot of people would kill to work in hospital is what I always heard.

 

[PA_dud3]

*holds up dilapidated GoodRx card*

"WiLl mY pReScRIptIoN bE FreE wItH tHis?"

 

[meltyblend]

"Why isn't my medication ready? My doctor sent it in 5 minutes ago. They said it'll be ready when I get there."
"What do you mean it's $10. My doctor said it'll only be $5!!!!"

 

[RxPreceptor]

More meaningful questions I get involve optimal medication timing, drug interactions, OTCs (anything goes), people just starting med X who thinks random skin manifestation is adverse drug reaction, how long does it take for drug X to notice effect for chronic condition, missed doses/accidentally doubled up, do I need to go to ER, etc.

The tedium: formulary checks for less costly alternatives, hunting down drug X that is currently back ordered, prescriber requests for alternative drugs, why is my copay X?

Typical retail stuff: a more recent one...guy asks me if there are any female pharmacists on duty right now. Turns out he was in need of help finding a particular tampon....the logic & awkwardness on this one just ****'in kills me. Yeah, only female RPhs do extensive studying @ colleges of pharmacy on tampons & would be able to properly help said boyfriend/father find kotex tampons.

I don't blame any RPhs for being cynical when we get asked so many non sequitur & non-relevant questions all the time

 

[JustFillIt]

Did you have to go through a 9 month program to become a pharmacist?

 

[olabrador23]

Did you have to go through a 9 month program to become a pharmacist?

how much they train students for retail in pharmacy school? 🤔

 

[zelman]

This is the most useful non-answer answer you’re going to get:

You will get a million garbage and stupid questions. The most valuable advice I can give you is not to help people with non-pharmacy junk. If people want you to help them with adult diapers or bandages or any of a million other things where you are not an expert, don’t waste your time. Just tell them you are trained and educated on pharmaceuticals and they will need to seek help elsewhere.

 

[Xenophylia]

How about "Can I have fries with that?"

 

[Pharmacy is a Scam]

Are you a pharmacist?

I took this to mean a question a customer would ask a random pharmacy staff, not a question directed at OP lol.

 

[zelman]

I took this to mean a question a customer would ask a random pharmacy staff, not a question directed at OP lol.

It was directed at OP, but I guess it works both ways. I wasn’t sure if they were a tech or pharmacist.

 

[Rouelle]

Common useful questions:

-Can I take *these* together? “These” often includes at least 1 OTC
-Does this interact with anything I’m already taking?
-What OTC do I take for X?

Common worthless questions:

-Phone call: I need a price check on X. I have Blue Cross
-Phone call: I need a price check on this narcotic. I don’t have insurance.
-Why isn’t my script ready? The dr said they would send it.

I’m leaving out several that probably won’t apply to you since you’re working at an indy

 

[sb.tnh]

I never have to ask a pharmacist anything. Most if not all of my questions can easily be answer by the pharmacy tech who is a high school graduate.

 

[Rockinacoustic]

"This patient has pyuria but no symptoms, should I treat?"
"What dose of Phenytoin should we discharge on?"
"Why doesn't this med scan?"
"Can I have a blanket?"
"Can you look at previous cultures and order antibiotics for sepsis?"
"Can I have something to eat?"
"Can you talk to this patient about insulin?"
"Which way is the bathroom?"

And that was just today. Bonus points if you can figure out the practice setting.

 

[JustFillIt]

I never have to ask a pharmacist anything. Most if not all of my questions can easily be answer by the pharmacy tech who is a high school graduate.

Right... your a dentist? Or a dental student? You can get right in line with the rest of us “fake doctors”

For the record I don’t ever have to ask dentists anything either

 

[sadface]

Right... your a dentist? Or a dental student? You can get right in line with the rest of us “fake doctors”

For the record I don’t ever have to ask dentists anything either

The only thing I remember calling dentists about when I worked retail was when they wrote for strengths of hydrocodone/acetaminophen that didn't exist anymore 🤔 .

 

[owlegrad]

Right... your a dentist? Or a dental student? You can get right in line with the rest of us “fake doctors”

For the record I don’t ever have to ask dentists anything either

Anything I need to ask the dentist I just ask the hygienist instead. They are basically the same anyway.

 

[sadface]

I never have to ask a pharmacist anything. Most if not all of my questions can easily be answer by the pharmacy tech who is a high school graduate.

I should add -- where I trained there were dental grads doing intern rotations in our ICU for their oral/maxillofacial surgery residency which is sort of scary... they had a lot of questions for me and were very thankful for the interdisciplinary help because ego doesn't get you anywhere and the patients come first 🙂

 

[JustFillIt]

Anything I need to ask the dentist I just ask the hygienist instead. They are basically the same anyway.

Pretty much....

 

[spacecowgirl]

I never have to ask a pharmacist anything. Most if not all of my questions can easily be answer by the pharmacy tech who is a high school graduate.

I hope your pharmacist doesn't check for any allergies or interactions and then charges you AWP +20.

 

[sb.tnh]

Right... your a dentist? Or a dental student? You can get right in line with the rest of us “fake doctors”

For the record I don’t ever have to ask dentists anything either

Anything I need to ask the dentist I just ask the hygienist instead. They are basically the same anyway.

Lol no need to get defensive, I'm not bashing pharmacists. I am just answering the question that is being asked here.

It's true that everybody has to go to a pharmacy, but most of the time when I am there to pick up my meds a technician would ask for my ID, my DOB and then hand me the meds. Otherwise I am just interacting with the cashier who check out my items. That is my anecdote based on my experience as a patient/consumer, I am wrong to say what I saw? Now speaking as a provider, our dental school does have a pharmacist who we can go to and get a consult, but I am close to graduate and have yet to meet this person. Maybe when I am out and practice I will get to see the actual need of getting a consultation with a pharmacist. But again what is being asked in this thread is geared towards questions that patients might ask a pharmacist. In that case, I am not wrong.

And yes I agree that you can just ask hygienists most questions. That's why us dentists pay them to do what we don't want to do and save our time, which is (big) money!

Do pharmacists really have this inferiority complex of being called "fake doctors" (your words, not mine)? You can over to the dental forum and call us that and nobody would even care (okay maybe the pre-dents do).

 

[HandsomeVampire]

"Can I have your number?"

 

[DoctorStrong]

if you could also share your journey from hospital to retail, that would be great. A lot of people would kill to work in hospital is what I always heard.

In hospital, you get calls all the time from angry nurses, doctors, you need to play politics, you have 8 pharmacists working at the same shift want to prove they're better than you and know it all, non stop phone calls, sick calls. you may get mandated to cover another shift in case of sick calls.

 

[owlegrad]

Lol no need to get defensive, I'm not bashing pharmacists. I am just answering the question that is being asked here.

I wasn't being defensive or bashing dentists at all. Just my observation, sorry if it offended you in any way. Was I wrong to share what I saw?

 

[wagrxm2000]

I never have to ask a pharmacist anything. Most if not all of my questions can easily be answer by the pharmacy tech who is a high school graduate.

I think dentists should stop worrying about pharmacists and instead learn the correct strength for Vicodin.

There was a change, it's not that hard to learn.

 

[DagS132]

Lol no need to get defensive, I'm not bashing pharmacists. I am just answering the question that is being asked here.

It's true that everybody has to go to a pharmacy, but most of the time when I am there to pick up my meds a technician would ask for my ID, my DOB and then hand me the meds. Otherwise I am just interacting with the cashier who check out my items. That is my anecdote based on my experience as a patient/consumer, I am wrong to say what I saw? Now speaking as a provider, our dental school does have a pharmacist who we can go to and get a consult, but I am close to graduate and have yet to meet this person. Maybe when I am out and practice I will get to see the actual need of getting a consultation with a pharmacist. But again what is being asked in this thread is geared towards questions that patients might ask a pharmacist. In that case, I am not wrong.

And yes I agree that you can just ask hygienists most questions. That's why us dentists pay them to do what we don't want to do and save our time, which is (big) money!

Do pharmacists really have this inferiority complex of being called "fake doctors" (your words, not mine)? You can over to the dental forum and call us that and nobody would even care (okay maybe the pre-dents do).

You are insufferable and you don't even realize it, which is normal. Did you even understand what your original comment implies?
Btw, im not even a pre pharm student and I even got ticked off by your conceited comment.

 

[Subvisual]

My right little toe itches and the taco I ate last night made me slightly gassy. Which of my medications is the cause of this!?

 

[Rxaunt]

Bandaids I get more questions about Bandaids then just about anything else. I hate Bandaid questions! I have been called or implied to be stupid more times than I can count because I couldn't or wouldn't tell them what the best bandaid is

 

[sakigt]

Anything I need to ask the dentist I just ask the hygienist instead. They are basically the same anyway.

I always go in around lunch time for my cleanings so Ive seen my dentist about 1/5 or 6 visits.

 

[firework]

If your pharmacy/grocery store has any coupon program or points program or transfer incentives, make sure you know the rules inside out. Read the small prints too. People are more serious about coupons than they are with their prescriptions.

 

[CetiAlphaFive]

Bandaids I get more questions about Bandaids then just about anything else. I hate Bandaid questions! I have been called or implied to be stupid more times than I can count because I couldn't or wouldn't tell them what the best bandaid is

You haven't had the realization that you should just point to the shiniest package and affirm their preconceptions?

Human trash like that isn't really worth the time or effort.

Better yet, put out a sign.
"These are the best ones! Pharmacist recommended!"
Your manager will love it.