Seriously, what the heck is WRONG with people?
I'm working ALONE on a busy day last week. I have no tech because The Authorities would rather put patient safety at risk rather than move some troops around to a busier store. (You probably saw my blog post about the game of Risk HERE).
A lady comes in with a new prescription and wants to refill four others, RIGHT AFTER standing in line while a guy drops off six new prescriptions for his father. The phone is ringing in the background but I'M ALONE and I can't do everything at the same time.
I tell her it's going to be at least two hours. I tell her that I'm alone (she can hear the phone ringing over and over) and that I'll get to her prescriptions, just not right away.
She asks, "Would tomorrow be better?"
"Why yes, bless you. See you tomorrow," I say as I run back and try to get the phone. They hung up just before I am able to pick it up.
So I stick her labels on the bottom of the pile. That pile keeps getting bigger and bigger. Every time I'm pulled away from filling I am unable to fill (duh, you'd think people would get that part) and it gets bigger until I have a chance to catch up.
An hour later I'm still running around the pharmacy when I see the lady. I smile, thinking she forgot another medication she needed refilled. I can add another one to the bottom.
No.
She wants to know if the medications are ready for pick up.
"I just thought I'd check," she says.
My actual response looked like this:
PEOPLE! LISTEN CAREFULLY! DO NOT DO THIS! IF YOU AGREE TO PICK UP YOUR PRESCRIPTION TOMORROW, DON'T COME BACK UNTIL TOMORROW.
Every time the phone rings, every time you approach the drop off window or the pick up window, or you call and want to talk to someone when you very easily could use an automated service... YOU TAKE TIME AWAY FROM THE FILLING PROCESS AND IT ADDS TIME UNTIL I GET YOUR PRESCRIPTIONS FILLED!
What this lady was thinking is beyond me. I quickly showed her my stack of labels to fill.
"Yours is on THE BOTTOM, I said, because YOU SAID YOU'D COME BACK TOMMORROW."
Please. Water. Please. A smack in the face. Please. Someone please wake me up from this nightmare. Please.
4 comments:
And if they complain to your authorities I suspect it's your fault & not theirs????
I had a woman call in at 6:45 (we close at 7) for her 2 monthly controls. She said that her son would pick them up the next day at 10am. All was well with the world until I looked up 5 minutes later to see Mrs. Hateful silently cruise up to the counter mounted on the Heifer Hauler (aka the power cart) She said she was there for her 2 prescriptions. I told her that we wouldn't have them ready until 10am tomorrow as we had oh so recently discussed. Her response...."Well, I changed my mind." The boss was a bit pissed when I told her that it would have been a nice gesture if she would have called to let us know that she changed her pinhead mind. Of course, we busted out butts to get her crap ready. She didn't even say thank you. I love my job.
Replying to Anonymous. Stop being a pushover. That is the only way to better our profession.
And this why I ALWAYS call ahead, and say please and thank you with a smile. This is why I'm the one who has been next in line for 30 minutes while the patient you have at the window dreams up more complications (wrong insurance company, oh, my new ins needs a prior auth, well this isn't what I got before, etc. etc.)smiles at YOU (I may or may not glare at the previous patient's retreating backside.) Honestly, I think any pharmacist or tech who can get thru the day without killing at least one patient should be nominated for sainthood.
If sainthood is not an option under current religions, I propose we start a new one.
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