Why do we need Pharmaceutical Reps?

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

ZpackSux

Retired
Removed
10+ Year Member
15+ Year Member
Joined
Feb 26, 2005
Messages
3,406
Reaction score
6
Other than being Eye Candies and providing free lunches?

Discuss.

Members don't see this ad.
 
FutureRxGal said:
You forgot all of the other freebies, such as pens and notepads, which can then be turned around and sold on eBay. :D :smuggrin:

Man..if we had internet while I was in RX School....I wouldn't've had to get a student loan.. :smuggrin:
 
Members don't see this ad :)
You cant beat all the free stuff you get from reps. I dont need to buy pens for school cause I have dozens of drug pens I got from the pharmacy. I love those stress relieving balls and the light up pens. :thumbup:
 
Who else are you going to laugh at with their limited company knowledge of thier drug and maybe just the bad stuff about their competitor's. They have a tendency to be the butt of a joke?
DR
 
Stating the obvious here:

The free stuff: pens, pad, etc
Eye Candy: Come on thats reason enough right?
Sadly: They just only remind you this rep is suppose to know everything about the drug...imagine what your patient would know compare to the rep.
 
WVUPharm2007 said:
They are needed to brainwash the physician into thinking that Xopenex is actually needed in some manner.
oh come on...you get the active isomer and less side effects! That's awesome! It has to be true because my rep told me so!
 
Caverject said:
oh come on...you get the active isomer and less side effects! That's awesome! It has to be true because my rep told me so!

You need a good arse whipping.. that's what your rep should have given you. :smuggrin: :smuggrin:
 
ZpackSux said:
You need a good arse whipping.. that's what your rep should have given you. :smuggrin: :smuggrin:

The way some of these reps look, C-ject should be so lucky! ;)
action-smiley-073.gif


His rep told him so...well, if he now truly loves Xopenex, then Sepracor must have some real hotties in the field! :smuggrin:
 
Members don't see this ad :)
ZpackSux said:
Other than being Eye Candies and providing free lunches?

Discuss.


Drug reps allow you to behave clinically in a retail setting. While they do their pitch you stroke your chin and nod sagely as the work piles up. The customers waiting behind the rep are properly impressed. If the rep is good looking you can wink wickedly and ask her to say something clinical like ointment

Forgive me, my glasses are fogging. :eek:
 
baggywrinkle said:
Drug reps allow you to behave clinically in a retail setting. While they do their pitch you stroke your chin and nod sagely as the work piles up. The customers waiting behind the rep are properly impressed. If the rep is good looking you can wink wickedly and ask her to say something clinical like ointment

Forgive me, my glasses are fogging. :eek:


Funny Chit!!!
 
I could understand as a hospital pharmacy manager, but in a retail setting, how often does one see a pharm sales rep? Does the pharmacist really have that much say in what drug a person takes, other than OTCs (where there is far less profit?). The physicians write the prescriptions, so shouldn't they focus all of their energy there?
 
SomeGuy said:
I could understand as a hospital pharmacy manager, but in a retail setting, how often does one see a pharm sales rep? Does the pharmacist really have that much say in what drug a person takes, other than OTCs (where there is far less profit?). The physicians write the prescriptions, so shouldn't they focus all of their energy there?

Trust me, they wander in at the worst possible time when ever they are
fresh from hawking the newest silver bullet. They waste your time, drop off literature, ask if you have thus & so in stock, what are the docs writing for,
lame pricing questions and they don't even feed you! If you are lucky you get
pens and sticky pads. I tried to con them into talking with my tech. He can stroke his chin as well as I can.
 
bananaface said:
Wow. Your avatar just grew.

I just puffed up my chest and sucked in my gut when you walked into the room
 
SomeGuy said:
I could understand as a hospital pharmacy manager, but in a retail setting, how often does one see a pharm sales rep? Does the pharmacist really have that much say in what drug a person takes, other than OTCs (where there is far less profit?). The physicians write the prescriptions, so shouldn't they focus all of their energy there?


Believe me, we see them far more often than we really care to. What has happened from time to time is that a rep will come in after hitting up the local doctors offices pitching their drug. They'll usually come up to the counter at rather inopportune times, pitch their drug, fling a few pens and trinkets across the counter, and say that "you should expect to see more scripts around here for drug xyz. You know Dr. so-and-so over on the corner? Yeah, I just spoke with him." They'll inquire about your inventory of said drug, and you'll ask them for memo pads, post-it notes, pens, and little alarm clocks. Every time I get an alarm clock, they activate the battery and take the box with them. I asked a rep why he did that, and he said it was so it won't show up on eBay the next day. :smuggrin:
 
We get our share of reps at my retail setting. The best one was the McNeil rep who tried to tell us taht tylenol was better than advil at stopping pain and inflamation and that a flexeril 5 is better than 1/2 a cyclobenzaprine 10. She tried to give use tylenol samples but no one would take them and we asked her why she didnt bring use dougnuts since there is a dunkin doughnuts next door. She didnt look so pleased, but we did get some pens that didnt work
 
They usually piss me off with their propaganda. Especially when it's yet another random combination of seemingly indiscriminate amounts of psuedophedrine/phenylephrine, guaifenesin, and DXM/codeine. Ambifed, Maxifed, Entex, thatonedrug II, accuhist, bromohist, etc, etc. None of them are ever AB rated to each other and I have to call back the doc who wrote for whatever new concoction the drug rep has been pushing around town for whatever random concoction we happen to have on the shelf. In the end it doesn't matter because medicaid doesn't pay for any of them anyway and I just have them buy a bottle of Tussin CF. Then I get to hear them bitch about how rich I am and that I should just give them the cough medicine for free. Then the manager of the main store gets wind that I've upset someone because I can't make medicaid pay for something and I get to hear him rant on about how I'm overpaid. And it's at this point I want to kill every drug rep that has ever lived.
 
So how much of a spike in new prescriptions do you see when the reps make their rounds to the physicians? Is it really that profound?
 
SomeGuy said:
So how much of a spike in new prescriptions do you see when the reps make their rounds to the physicians? Is it really that profound?

Makes a huge difference. Something like Reopro..which costs $500 per vial.. a typical procedure could go through 3 to 4 vials.. one cardiologist doing 3 procedures... It drives up cost through the roof.

Don't let the power of short short mini-skirt fool you.
 
Top