Boo!

Happy Halloween!

This is me...

Discovering that next year's

Super Bowl Sunday falls on MY Sunday to work!

No Additives Allowed!

Some people come up to the pharmacy and just stare at the wall of cough/cold selections. Most people come up, see what they want, then grab it and leave. But some are compelled to just stare, like they're in a trance or waiting for one of the packages to talk to them. If I'm busy I just keep what I'm doing and figure if they really need help they'll let me know. But if I'm not busy, I feel compelled to ask them if they need help. That's my downfall. I care too much.

Today a lady is staring. I'm not busy. You know this is going to be good, right? "Hi, do you need some help?" You always have to have an introduction with this company. Hi, hello... something. It's good customer service. They told me so. I had my own business for 15 years, but I need a corporation to tell me how to conduct customer service.

Anyway, she says she needs a cough suppressant without any of those "additives." I'm not sure what she means, so I come out front to look at the selections. I'm deciphering that what she means is that she wants just a cough suppressant, not a multi-symptom formulation. So I show her the cough suppressant selections... but I'm overwhelmed by the stench of alcohol and cigarette smoke and her missing teeth. She's obviously just returned from the local pub and stopped by to get... you know... something for her cough, but it better not have any of those additives.

And then I noticed in her cart not one, not two, but three cases of beer. I'm not a beer person. I don't even drink. But I can tell the difference between top brand and bottom brand beer. In her cart are three cases of what must be the cheapest beer you can buy. This lady, reeking of smoke and beer, obviously on her way to some high class party, is overly concerned that she get a cough suppressant without "additives."

I'm making a new word. It's called Phirony. That's short for Pharmacy-Irony.

Demotivational Hump Day... Scary Stuff!

A List of Medications YOU Should NOT Have in your Home

The following is a list of medications that you SHOULD NOT have in your home.

Primatene Mist or Tablets

"Primatene Mist does not treat asthma—it treats symptoms that can come from asthma," Kyle Hogarth, MD

Treating the symptoms of asthma alone allows repeated asthma attacks. That can permanently damage lungs. The underlying cause of the asthma needs treatment. Primatene Mist or tablets do not solve the problem. They make it worse by not treating the condition. LINK

Mercurochrome

This medicine and other drugs containing mercury came under review starting in 1978. Mercury in large doses is a poison leading to problems in the brain, kidneys, and developing fetuses. It is NOT a safe medication to have in your home. LINK

Mercury Thermometers

The EPA "encourages consumers, businesses and other organizations to use non-mercury thermometers whenever possible." Mercury thermometers have been being phased out as well. Why? For the same reason as above. Mercury is just not a good thing to have around. LINK


Expired Medications

Most medications lose their potency after their expiration date and are harmless... but some medications actually become toxic after they expire (Tetracycline). Be sure to check with your local pharmacist for information on how to dispose of your old medication. As tempting as it may be, keeping those extra capsules of Amoxicillin from 1986 will not help you in the future. LINK and LINK

Anything recommended by Dr. Oz

Oz is often accused of promoting "unproven nostrums" and making "misleading claims." Nothing sends your pharmacist into orbit faster than when you ask for something recommended by Dr. Oz. LINK

More Good Advice:

*  Don't rely on child-proof packaging to protect your kids

*  Never prepare and/or take/give medication in the dark

*  Never leave any vitamins, aspirin, or any medication on kitchen tables or counter tops, bedside tables, or dresser tops

*  Don't tell a child that medicine tastes like candy

*  Store all medications out of reach of children and preferably in a locked cabinet 

*  Make sure and purses or bags in your home that could contain anything poisonous are kept out of the reach of kids at all times

*  Always keep medication and liquids in original containers.

*  Be aware of all medications in your home -- keep a list

Bang Your Head Funnies

Guest Post: 7 Habits of the Lazy Pharmacist

Crazy RxMan decided to take the day off. Today's guest post is by Twitter enthusiast, Lazy RxMan (@LazyRxMan).

The Seven Habits of the Lazy Pharmacist

1. Never do today what can be put off until tomorrow, especially if you're off tomorrow.

2. Keep your eyes down so you don't see anyone at the register to go help. Someone else can take care of them.

3. Never show up early. Know the time from your car to the pharmacy door down to the second. Be on time, but never early. You don't work for free, do you?

4. Keep a few of the most-asked-for OTC items under your counter. There, that's a lot better than taking them to it when they ask, right?

5. Set the tone for the whole pharmacy by getting some of those little drink umbrellas for your beverages!

6. Do enough to just stay under the radar. Stay frosty against the adversary. Trust no one, admit nothing, deny everything.

7. Use the phrase... "Yeah, we don't have that." -- a simple answer, yet so powerful in so many ways.

This is Me...

After a motivational pep talk

from The Authorities...

Imagine... a PUSHY Lady in the Pharmacy

I'm helping one lady get her medication when another lady comes up to the counter. She can't wait, you see, and needs to push her way in front of the other lady. Unfortunately, this happens all too often despite the fact we have not one, not two, not three, but FOUR signs saying to "Wait here to preserve patient privacy" six feet away from the pharmacy counter. If you can't see one of the four signs, there's something SERIOUSLY WRONG with you.

Anyway, the lady says she needs something for stomach acid but can't remember the name of it.  She says, "You chew it. It's like Tums but it's not Tums."

"Are you looking for Rolaids?"

"No."

"Is it Pepcid?"

"No."

"How about Mylanta? They have a chewable tablet."

"No, that's not it."

"Hmmm... Are you sure it's not Rolaids?"

"No.  I'd remember if it was that."

"How about Gaviscon?"

"No."

I'm quite perplexed now.  I ask, "How about Pepto-Bismal? They have a chewable tablet."

She's irritated with ME now. "No, no. That's not it. I'm going to do some shopping and see if I remember." 

Off she goes. Twenty minutes pass. I'm helping another lady at the register, when Mrs. Pushy pushes her way to the counter again.

"I remembered the medication. It's Rolaids!"

<big sigh>

Well, at least we know there really is something SERIOUSLY WRONG with her.

This is a rerun. It was originally HERE.

Demotivational Hump Day... Norco Milk

Crazy RxMan Pharmacy Memes

Sometimes Bad Things Come to an End

Our illustrious leader is no longer with us, ladies and gentlemen. The pharmacy director for our region has moved on. Questions still remain as to why he left the company. Perhaps it was the number of complaints about him. Perhaps it was the number of pharmacists that quit. Perhaps it was a rat leaving a sinking ship. We just don't know.

But what I do know is that this guy had some weird view of what pharmacy is all about. He would routinely come into the pharmacies and move and/or remove anything that made us look like a pharmacy.

He would stand out in the aisle, staring... then move to another vantage point, stare some more, then come in and move stuff. You see, he didn't want us to LOOK like we were a pharmacy. If he could see a box of amber vials, he would move it where it couldn't be seen by a customer. If he could see a note or phone number pasted up where he could see it, he would come in, pull it down, and put it in a binder... to go with the other 150,087 binders we have in the pharmacy.

We have a long counter separating the front register area from the back where we do the filling. It is about 24 feet long and 2 feet wide. It's a great place to put filled prescriptions, papers, projects. It's a WORK counter designed for WORK.

No, we do NOT look like this...

No, having anything on that particular counter was offensive to this guy. It had to be completely clear at all times. We don't want to look like we actually do any pharmacy work in a pharmacy. Now I can understand looking like a cluttered mess. That looks bad. But a little clutter just looks like you're busy, and it gets removed by the end of the day when we get caught up.

No, keep it clear at all times, we were told. Why? Because his whim and fancy demanded it.

Silly Sunday Funnies