Should I turn down job at Methadone-dispensing pharmacy?

[speedypear]

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Hi everyone,

I am hoping to apply to pharmacy school next year at UBC, and have been applying for pharmacy assistant type jobs this summer in order to get some experience. It's pretty hard to find an employer that doesn't require that you have a Pharmacy Tech diploma to work there.

I recently applied to a posting on Canada Job Bank for a pharmacy assistant position. They didn't seem to be bothered by my lack of pharmacy experience, and pretty much hired me on the spot at an informal interview today.

The thing is, the pharmacy is located in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (druggie area with lots of homeless) and it seems that the only drug they dispense is methadone for drug addicts. I also read news articles about this particular pharmacy being shut down in 2008 for offering cash incentives to methadone patients (Link to article here). It looks like they have reopened.

Is it even legal for someone like me who is not a pharmacist or technician to dispense methadone? I am having major second thoughts about working here, and thinking maybe I should just look for a volunteer job at a regular pharmacy, like Shoppers Drug Mart.

Thanks for any opinions.

 

[phathead]

Hi everyone,

I am hoping to apply to pharmacy school next year at UBC, and have been applying for pharmacy assistant type jobs this summer in order to get some experience. It's pretty hard to find an employer that doesn't require that you have a Pharmacy Tech diploma to work there.

I recently applied to a posting on Canada Job Bank for a pharmacy assistant position. They didn't seem to be bothered by my lack of pharmacy experience, and pretty much hired me on the spot at an informal interview today.

The thing is, the pharmacy is located in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (druggie area with lots of homeless) and it seems that the only drug they dispense is methadone for drug addicts. I also read news articles about this particular pharmacy being shut down in 2008 for offering cash incentives to methadone patients (Link to article here). It looks like they have reopened.

Is it even legal for someone like me who is not a pharmacist or technician to dispense methadone? I am having major second thoughts about working here, and thinking maybe I should just look for a volunteer job at a regular pharmacy, like Shoppers Drug Mart.

Thanks for any opinions.

I think you first need to look over again what you mean by dispensing and the roles of techs and pharmacists. You will not be dispensing anything per law, you're just a person who works there.

That being said, you should be able to look up whether or not they are on probation with the state and, if so, what for. I've seen many pharmacies be accused of things in the media that were not true. I've also seen many that were true, so its good to be safe.

 

[speedypear]

Thanks for replying phathead. I think I'll just try it out for a while and see how it goes, and maybe ask other pharmacists if what I'm doing is legal.

 

[dtran01]

What that pharmacy is doing is smart business. It is causing unintended side effects in the community which is unfortunate. As anyone who has worked in retail pharmacy knows, the first pill is always the most expensive one because it includes the dispensing fee. According to the article, canada has a program where if you supervise them taking the methadone pill (generally for weaning people off opioid addiction, but it can be abused like any other), you can bill for the consultation and monitoring.

What the pharmacy is doing is offering cash to pay them for the inconvenience of coming by on a daily basis so they can cash in on that monitoring fee every day. also as a bonus, the one pill is charged at the higher rate that includes the dispensing fee. This is a very profitable idea.

I honestly can't say that their practice is bad. If they are trying to kick drug addiction, you might as well make sure they stick to it. However, I'd prefer that they did this program with Suboxone, as it makes you sick if you take anything in addition. You will have to use your own judgment to see about the pharmacist's character.

 

[UBCmicrobi]

I think you might appreciate some Canadian perspective on this.

Firstly, I think you are mistaken in assuming that you must have a pharm tech diploma to get a pharm tech job. In Vancouver, this is certainly not the case. Myself and many of my classmates were hired as pharmacy techs before we got into pharmacy school, and didn't have pharm tech diplomas. It might take some hunting, but there are certainly pharmacies in Vancouver that hire technicians with no experience.

Secondly, regarding the job at the methadone pharmacy, the fact that it is a pharmacy that primarily dispenses methadone wouldn't necessarily deter me from taking the job, but the pharmacy's history would. Having said that, the article was from a couple years ago, so things could have changed. No matter which pharmacy you work at, you'll be dealing with methadone patients. As a tech, you won't be "dispensing" it (or witnessing ingestion), since legally that must be done by a pharmacist, but you'll be involved in some part of the dispensing process. If they are asking you to do something illegal, such as witnessing the ingestion of the methadone, without the direct supervision of the pharmacist, that's another story.....But seriously, if you plan on working in Vancouver, dispensing methadone is pretty much a given.

UBC pharmacy Class of 2012

 

[UBCmicrobi]

Thanks for replying phathead. I think I'll just try it out for a while and see how it goes, and maybe ask other pharmacists if what I'm doing is legal.

Read the Methadone Maintenance Guide for BC pharmacies

http://www.bcpharmacists.org/librar...esources/5059-Methadone_Maintenance_Guide.pdf

 

[UBCmicrobi]

What that pharmacy is doing is smart business. It is causing unintended side effects in the community which is unfortunate. As anyone who has worked in retail pharmacy knows, the first pill is always the most expensive one because it includes the dispensing fee. According to the article, canada has a program where if you supervise them taking the methadone pill (generally for weaning people off opioid addiction, but it can be abused like any other), you can bill for the consultation and monitoring.

What the pharmacy is doing is offering cash to pay them for the inconvenience of coming by on a daily basis so they can cash in on that monitoring fee every day. also as a bonus, the one pill is charged at the higher rate that includes the dispensing fee. This is a very profitable idea.

I honestly can't say that their practice is bad. If they are trying to kick drug addiction, you might as well make sure they stick to it. However, I'd prefer that they did this program with Suboxone, as it makes you sick if you take anything in addition. You will have to use your own judgment to see about the pharmacist's character.

Yes, pharmacies can "cash in" by doing daily dispense, but you are completely mistaken about the reasoning behind daily dispense/daily witness of methadone.

Perhaps you should read this too http://www.bcpharmacists.org/librar...esources/5059-Methadone_Maintenance_Guide.pdf

 

[KARM12]

You would have some pretty interesting work stories. Actually the addicts are some of the nicest patients I've had.

 

[ShadowRX]

You would have some pretty interesting work stories. Actually the addicts are some of the nicest patients I've had.

Because they're getting methadone? I would be happy too. (Then again, I prob wouldn't be in this situation.)

 

[phathead]

You would have some pretty interesting work stories. Actually the addicts are some of the nicest patients I've had.

Yep, people never believe me when I say this. The most kind patients I've ever had were those who were aware they had a problem. They might get a little pushy sometimes, but they'll apologize up and down for it.

 

[speedypear]

Thanks for your thoughts everyone. My sister asked her friend, a nurse, about the job and she said she would never work there. She also said that pharmacy admissions would look down on such a job, and question my ethics if I worked there. Apparently, everyone in healthcare here knows about this particular pharmacy, and I guess the owner has a poor reputation (he owns several other pharmacies in the area which provide mostly methadone and not much else).

The pharmacist I spoke to seemed nice, but I was alarmed at the lack of equipment and medicines in the room. The customers and staff are separated by a Plexiglas wall, with only a little hole above the desk to slide things across. The staff area is a dingy, bare room with just a handful of pill bottles in sight. I will keep trying to find a volunteer job somewhere then. Thanks again all.

 

[WVUPharm2007]

Read the Methadone Maintenance Guide for BC pharmacies

So I hear they are fixin' to screw yinz on generic drug reimbursement like they did to Ontario. How's that whole thing goin' over yonder on the Left Coast?