Oct

The life and times of a pharmacist

Posted by The *Angriest* Pharmacist as GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

I got this emailed to me by “E” — I did not write this.
Source: The Angry Pharmacist

Theres a lot of things that you will experience once you’re a pharmacist:
You’ll be asked questions.
You’ll be praised.
You’ll be thanked.
You’ll see children grow up.
You’ll see grandparents pass away.
You’ll be the person to translate between medical speak and common english.
You’ll give relief to an nervous mother.
You’ll give people hope who have none.
You’ll smile.
You’ll laugh.
You’ll joke with your patients.
You’ll see your patients go to the prom.
You’ll dispense that Plan B Rx to that girl who was in diapers just last week (so you thought).
You’ll be asked questions that involve the word penis and vagina.
You’ll be asked to look at rashes, and pink eye, and wounds.
You’ll be trusted when their doctors cannot be.
You’ll save lives.
You’ll drive a nice car, have a house, and a good living.
You’ll be hounded by family and friends for advice.
You’ll be the first to hear about test results and what they mean.
You’ll be the most trusted person in most people’s lives.

However………………………..

You’ll be bitched at.
You’ll be taken for granted.
You’ll be the target of angry words, attacks, and threats.
You’ll be lied to.
You’ll be bullshitted.
You’ll be overworked and understaffed.
You’ll have no gratification from the people who owe you their lives and well being.
You’ll be used.
You’ll see the shit at the bottom of the pond of society.
You’ll (somehow) be the person responsible for slavery, poverty, and all that is evil in the world.
You’ll be cried at one min, and yelled at the next when you wont fill Soma early.
You’ll be the target of con scams, stories, and shit.
You’ll become callous and jaded to the world around you.
You’ll see not things as right and wrong, but truth and bullshit.
You’ll be able to tell a crackhead the moment they walk in the front door.
You’ll see addiction, thievery, and diversion.
You wont have one min to yourself without being interrupted by an idiot.
You’ll see stupidity.
You’ll get a gun shoved in your face for money or narcotics.
You’ll be the target of crime and theft.
Your car will be stolen or vandalized or hit in the parking lot by someone with no license, no insurance, and is here illegally (but gets more health benefits than you, on your tax dollar).
You’ll sit there powerless to do anything about an addict because you lack proof.
You’ll see crooked doctors write out gallons of Vicodin and get away with it.
You’ll get audited by insurance companies and the DEA and the state board over stupid shit.
You’ll see doctors who will rather listen to a big boobed drug rep than you.
You’ll be fucked over by the chains and mail order pharmacies who are supposed to be on your side.
You’ll get shafted by insurance companies.
You’ll see that AWP-25% + 1.50 and think its a good deal.
You’ll be left on hold for an hour because the doctors office is too cheap to buy a fax machine.
You’ll deal with ignorant doctor office staff who should be cleaning toilets than calling in prescriptions. You’ll get orders wrong because the fucking nurse cant speak clear english.
You’ll get a glimmer of happiness when you see a cash customer, only to have it be snuffed out when he wants his Rx’s transfered to a mail order pharmacy because its ‘cheaper’ (after you did all the work to fill them).
Your time will be worth nothing to the patients.
You’ll get mad.
You’ll get frustrated.
You’ll consider going on medication.
You’ll go on medication.
And at the end of the day, when you get home and stare down at the bottom of that third glass of gin; you’ll wonder why in the fuck you went to school to deal with this.
Remember, 98% of the world are good people, but it just takes a fraction of the 2% of assholes to really ruin your day.

Or Print it...

The Ole' Apothecary says October 21st, 2008 at 6:39 pm

The negative list is longer than the positive list. However, for the most part, I have not had to bring work home with me, and I am not tied to a pager. Most important in the “overall” is that the practice of pharmacy has so far survived all of the hills and valleys of the economy. Boom or bust, I have always had a job; I have not yet been in a position where I had to send out resumes and go on interviews with hat in hand. In fact, I would read “resume tips” and “interview tips” wondering why anyone would have to endure these challenges.

Perhaps we can stand back and accept that one person’s trash is another’s treasure. I don’t think pharmacy will end up on the TV show “dirty jobs.”

TheAngryPharmacist says October 21st, 2008 at 8:23 pm

Who in the fuck do you think had the awesomeness to write something that good:

http://www.theangrypharmacist.com/archives/2006/10/for_all_those_p.html

No fucking way…and over 2 years ago.

Ugh. I can’t believe I’ve reposted something you wrote!

Let it be known that this was inadvertent and not a copycat attempt.

sickofstupidpeople says October 21st, 2008 at 11:29 pm

It’s unfortunate that the negative list is longer than the positive… I think, though, that the positive events have a much longer lasting effect than the negatives. For example, someone calls me a fucking bitch because I won’t fill a control early, and it pisses me off for 30 minutes. But the hug from a patient can put a smile on my face for hours. It’s why I still do this.

Lowly Pharm Tech says October 22nd, 2008 at 2:07 am

Wow word for word! Anything to add or remove from the list Angry?

As an aspiring pharmacist already working in retail pharmacy, I am already experiencing some of these points or have seen others go through them and share stories.

What exactly gets you through the rough stuff Angriest and/or Angry? I’m sure venting through the blog helps some!

- Lowly

QuiltLady says October 22nd, 2008 at 11:11 am

I agree that it’s the positive reinforcement that keep us in this profession. I recently got a nice note from a MD when I drove 35 miles to pick up a cover RX for OxyIR 10mg for an elderly patient who was suffering from shingles. The MD had written for OxyER with an IR sig. I’m a float RPh and having the MD mail the Rx may have caused confusion, so I just picked it up on my way home and brought it back with me the next day!

Heather says October 22nd, 2008 at 6:30 pm

Or in my case because my stupid Dr tried only once to fax my Rx and got a busy single… 4 hours later when I went in to pick it up after having one of the worst days it still wasn’t there, I cried at my pharmacist and she called them and kicked some ass.

welshpharm says October 23rd, 2008 at 7:27 am

I had a mixture of those experiences today, almost had my first “refuse to dispense” script. Script came in for an elderly patient, for nitrazepam sedative, dose was 10 times normal maximum dose in a healthy adult, and patient is VERY old, usually requiring dose reduction. I informed the patient that I needed to check the dose with the hospital before i could dispense it. He was beaming that I was taking care of him, and happily agreed to pop back later.

I phoned the hospital, spoke to a junior doctor in same department as consultant was unavailable. this doctor was over the moon that I had caught it and thanked me, before asking me to send the patient back to walk in clinic for new script. Patient and junior GP very happy with outcome, so I was feeling very satisfied with myself, case closed.

or so I thought.

angry consultant rings up next day, patient has been and asked for new script after explaining situation. “who the hell am I to question an experienced hospital consultant” “I have no right” that sort of thing. He repeated the instructions and said that the patient WILL be back for the same dose, and I WILL dispense it as instructed. he threatened to report me to society for misconduct and the NHS for refusing to dispense it. I told him I would not dispense it as the dose was dangerous, he went nuts, demanded my reg number etc, is going to write a letter and have my license etc. He slammed the phone down on me as i wouldnt give in and told him that if he continued to treat other professinals like this, he would be reported himself. At this point i was very pissed of at the lack of respect, Dr’s bitch aspect of the job. but low and behold, 3 hours later, patient shows up with script for a dose 20x less. Patient thanked me for looking after him and had made a complaint against the consultant. I was very happy with the overall result and felt great about myself, my courage to tell the holier-than-thou no, and potentially saving a patients life.

The sadest part though, that I wasnt there to see the moment when the consultant realised that his stubborn, arrogant backed into a corner attitude could kill the patient, and this lowly pharmacist had called him on it.

DennisMM says October 23rd, 2008 at 1:15 pm

I’m not in the trade at all, but am quite friendly with my local pharmacist - to whom I don’t give as much business anymore, seeing as I’m on nine medications - and she occasionally shares a story. I respect what you folks go through and can’t imagine having such travails myself.

However, the anti-immigrant stuff is a bit strong. I’ve met very few doctors and nurses with accents so heavy I haven’t understood them readily; perhaps that’s more prevalent in cities larger than the Denver area. Also, that person who’s here illegally is not getting better health benefits than you are. If you’re not in an NHS-style environment, that illegal is going to the emergency room and will get a BIG bill. He may not pay it, but neither do lots of citizens. I didn’t pay mine until I was able to argue for a reasonable bill, and I have insurance. Just a thought.

rpboogie says October 24th, 2008 at 12:10 pm

It’s so good to see the truth about pharmacy practice published. As I read what the ANGRIES are thinking I’m thinking…NO FUCKING SHIT!!! I am also a proponent of the 98%/2% rule. It’s really only 2% of the people that are complete idiots. They all just happen to come in at the same time, or call, or order prescriptions, or work for pbm and come to the phone after being on hold for 30 minutes and have no fucking clue. Come to think of it some days it’s the 2%/98% rule. Everybodies fucking nuts…Juniper does have healing properties tho…when fermented…Ahhh, it is cathartic…God Loves You!