I have been a floater pharmacist with walgreens for 8 months now, and I have already gotten 6 STARS. would this stop me from getting my own store? How many of these events before you get in trouble?
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Lol, I don't know about Walgreens, but management in most other companies would probably already be talking about PIPing you.
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As long as you don't make too many "wrong patient" errors, you'll be ok. If you're a hard worker and customers like you, DM might be more forgiving. The worst kind of errors are wrong prescriptions sold or wrong patient. Try not to make those and you won't be in trouble.
Thank you!
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In so far as trouble there are a few things to worry about:
1. Current employment
2. Future employment
3. Civil, perhaps criminal liability
4. License
I would recommend evaluating the errors, trying to determine root cause, and a pattern. Be methodical to the point of robotic and don't take guesses or chances.
From what I've heard Walgreens decides who is in trouble by calculating your major error rate vs total scripts reviewed and then comparing it to your peers. Anyone in the bottom xx% gets disciplined.
So if you had 6 errors in 8 months but you mainly worked at busy stores where you verified 300+ a day you'd likely be okay. Inversely if you were working st slow stores with that many STARS your error rate could be high enough compared to others that you'd get talked to/written up.
As others said take the errors as a learning experience and grow from them. Identify what caused you to make the error and figure out what you can do in the future to prevent it. Get a good working pattern down for data and product reviews and then do it exactly the same every single time. Every. Single. Time.
So if you had 6 errors in 8 months but you mainly worked at busy stores where you verified 300+ a day you'd likely be okay. Inversely if you were working st slow stores with that many STARS your error rate could be high enough compared to others that you'd get talked to/written up.
As others said take the errors as a learning experience and grow from them. Identify what caused you to make the error and figure out what you can do in the future to prevent it. Get a good working pattern down for data and product reviews and then do it exactly the same every single time. Every. Single. Time.
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Yep. Do everything the same every time. If something is out of your pattern, assume the worst and put a cap on it at least or fax md or look it up. Always double verify at pickup, no exceptions.
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They also look at the type of errors. Wrong patient, med, or directions are obviously worse then say wrong doctor.
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6 of them will get you a visit from the district manager....I don’t know the timespan thiugh
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It has to be 2 within same week or 3 within 1 month. 6 errors in 8 months is not bad and will not get any visit or call from DM. I had 15 errors last year but my store is a high volume 400+ scripts/day. DM did not mention anything to me about my errors.
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I worked there almost 9 years and I have never heard what standards are before they take action against your employment. I am gonna guess they do this so people strive for the best quality. 6 errors in 8 months is bad and certainly 15 in a year is horrible. Our first obligation is do no harm. 400 rxs is not high volume either that's probably a tier 2 store. It is possible to achieve far better. I would suggest you reset your perspective.
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Worst one I had in past year is filling vitamin d2 when it was supposed to be d3 
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This is what I was told as well, and that this is done either quarterly or monthly. They go thru the list and obviously scratch the ones that you didn't play a role in even though they show up in your employee queue (e.g. you type the prescription in but a different pharmacist verified the prescription and it was the wrong drug in the vial). The steps to discipline follow the same as incorrect package sold to patient...verbal, written, final written, termination etc, but differ from IPSP in that it resets as long as you are not on the list twice in a row, where as with IPSP it does not reset until after a year from your last event. We have always been told you are more likely to be fired for NOT putting in a STARS event (no matter how serious the event was) than for putting STARS events in.
I would assume if you ever get to final written warning, I not only being going crazy slow and vigilant, but trying to find another job so you couldn't potentially be fired from the company if more events happen.
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Stars are a negative term? I remember in grade school we wanted to get as many gold stars stickers as possible.
Strategic Tracking and Analytical Reporting System or something close to that
