Today was drug abuser day at the pharmacy. Yayyy, I love drug abuser day. It's the day I tell all the kids on vicoden and morphine that they can't ruin their livers for a few more days cuz they just got 280million two days ago and they shouldn't be out; but of course, they are, and the doctor just wrote it wrong.
Also, it was relatively steady and wonderfully paced. Me and the gals had some fun talks but I was pretty happy to finally go home tonight.
Thursday, I get to work at the other pharmacy in Mt. Vernon and I get to work there with a fill-in pharmacist. Now my experience has been, people freak out when they don't recognize the person in the pharmacy. They have even more trouble when it's the pharmacist who's unfamiliar. They crap their pants when the pharmacist's foreign.
I learned this lesson quickly the first few fill ins I worked with. Fill ins are either lazy, mean, or foreign. I love the foreign ones cuz they're the funniest. I don't mind the lazy ones because I like to do things my way anyway. The mean ones I don't like because I don't like mean people.
But the customers, they don't like em regardless. They look at them with their evil eye and just watch 'em, like... they've got something growing out of their neck. And if they want to speak to the pharmacist they ask, "Well, where's ______? I want to talk to them" It's quite frustrating to me. One time, when my friend Tamer, the intern, answered the phone, they wouldn't talk to him, because he was foreign. When they asked to talk to me, I said that if they couldn't talk to him, I was going to tell them the same thing he did, so they couldn't talk to me.
Well, just the other day evidently, a woman walked into my Fredericktown store. That day, it was me, Dee the regular tech, and our fill-in pharmacist, Amin, a fill-in who happens to be a very large African man. The woman immediately turned around and went to the local sheriff's department. She wanted to inform them that the pharmacy...was being robbed by a black man and a some woman she didn't recognize....LOL. Fortunately there wasn't anybody readily available for her there at the sheriff's department, so she ran over next door to the municipal office and told the secretary the news, who called us and asked if we were okay. We were shocked to find out that someone actually thought I was robbing the store with my cute hair & blue smock!! I don't look like a freaking robber! Which of course started Amin on his usual discrimination speech. "Man, I'm scared to come to your store. I feel much safer in Columbus. I come here, and feel like I'm going to get shot." I tell Amin that nobody will shoot him here, they'll just smile to his face and talk about him behind his back, which is not much better than getting shot really.
Monday, August 13, 2007
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Sittin' on the Porch Drinkin' Ico Cooold Cherry Coke;)
So today was awesome. By awesome I mean ridiculous...because I mean it was a pretty busy Saturday for this store I suppose and alot was going on too. We did over 70 by 1:00. Pretty good. But I'll go ahead and start you out today with a little taste of this town I work in this summer. (My normal store is where I go to college during the school year).
First off all, I drive a good 40 minutes to get there...and the closest store of our chain to this one is another 20 minutes away from that. My pharmacy is the only one in this town. They have two traffic lights, three at most, there are tons of old people and no big chains...the only chain store in the town is said pharmacy. Everybody knows everybody and is consequently in their business. HIPPA laws are often spat upon daily by the 20 people standing at the counter at once.
Nine o'clock am...me and Linda arrive to find the order waiting on us that was supposed to come yesterday...which it did, only at 10:30 at night...that's how fed ex rolls this month i guess...so we look at the order and laugh because we know it's not going to get put away for another good 3 hours because there is already a line of insane people who are up bright and early and ready to drop off/pick up/wait around for their prescriptions!! because they've already been to the doctors and back and they have errands to run and why the hell would they sleep in on a SATURDAY MORNING!! There's things to be done in this town!! ha I honestly don't understand, if I didn't have to work, I, for sure, would not have been upright at that hour...
So anyways, I had my coffee & Linda had hers and we were in "the mode" we get in when there's business to do, instantly syncing into the rhythm we have with drop offs, pick-ups, talking customers, ringing phones, insurance companies, counting to 90, Linda and I's irrelevant conversations about camping and babies, and sticky labels.
However after a few hours, "Diarrhear" lady calls in. By the way, to add to this story, she is also the woman who didn't know her own birthdate nor did her daughter who was in yesterday to get her medicine, and she was the one I had to call all 5 help desks at Caremark for... MMmmm....she inquires if she's had anything called in yet today.
"Yes you have!" I say in my slow and pronounced voice that the geriatrics usually understand, "It's a Z-pack for your sinus infection!" (most commonly prescribed anti-biotic everrr...it's really hard core..you take 2 on the first day and one every day for 4 more days and bam you're done in 5 days compared to like 7, 10 or 28 like other anti-biotics)
She says, "Well that's very good!! that other one really gave me...{insert a long detailed reference to her diarrhear here}..
Ok, so I'll be right in"
When the very elderly lady comes in, I tell her as I'm checking her out that it's also kind of hard on your stomach...so be careful and eat it with something...
"Like crackers?"
"Sure...crackers are fine, just make sure your stomach has something in it"
"Bread?"
"Crackers, bread, toast, cereal....whatever you'd like to have in your stomach."
"Maybe some cereal with milk?"
"I suppose."
"Well, milk upsets my stomach sometimes."
"Ok...then maybe just toast or crackers."
"Oatmeal maybe? With only a little milk?"
"Well I mean...If that's what you want, sure that's fine!"
"I like oatmeal, but perhaps I'd better stick with toast.."
At this point I'm getting a tad irked, I felt that my time was being a tad wasted when there was so much to be done in my workday already...
"Toast is probably best, Mrs. _______"
"Okay...well I just want to say thank you so much, sweetie. You have just been so helpful to me and I told my daughter today just what a sweetheart you have been to us. God bless you, sweetie, and have a good day!"
aksdjflksdjfsdl;j awwwhhh.... frick....
I felt bad about feeling irritated. When she said that it kinda made the trouble worthwhile.
Now, this may suprise you but the highlight of my day was not that, but this:
A man who gets many prescriptions at our pharmacy has recently had trouble with his insurance company covering Celebrex, a pricey medication used for joint pain associated with arthritis. It's very very expensive so it needs a prior authorization from the doctor before his insurance will cover it. I've been on the phone with him off and on all week to see if it had gone through and now that the weekend's here we have to wait until Monday to try it again. So this guy comes in to pick his other various meds today. He's a pretty solid and big guy with an even bigger personality and presence. He's about in his 20s and looks like one of those loud, but funny and hardworking guys, who's everyone's buddy but just don't mess with him..ha.
I tell him that I tried his Celebrex today.
"Did it go through?"
"No unfortunately not, plus it's the weekend to we'll most likely just wait until Monday to run it. Have you called your doctor to inform him of the prior auth so he can call your insurance?"
"Yeah I did a while ago but I'll call him again today. Why doesn't the insurance company want to pay for it?"
I explained to him the various possibilities from cost to step therapy but ultimately that we didn't know why and he'd have to call his insurance to find out why they rejected it. "It's mainly about cost though, they want you to try less expensive meds first before they have to cover this pricey one"
"Oh," he said, and after a short pause he looked down.
"...Bastards," he whispered.
hahahaha....so funny to me for some reason, it made my day.
I'm out!
First off all, I drive a good 40 minutes to get there...and the closest store of our chain to this one is another 20 minutes away from that. My pharmacy is the only one in this town. They have two traffic lights, three at most, there are tons of old people and no big chains...the only chain store in the town is said pharmacy. Everybody knows everybody and is consequently in their business. HIPPA laws are often spat upon daily by the 20 people standing at the counter at once.
Nine o'clock am...me and Linda arrive to find the order waiting on us that was supposed to come yesterday...which it did, only at 10:30 at night...that's how fed ex rolls this month i guess...so we look at the order and laugh because we know it's not going to get put away for another good 3 hours because there is already a line of insane people who are up bright and early and ready to drop off/pick up/wait around for their prescriptions!! because they've already been to the doctors and back and they have errands to run and why the hell would they sleep in on a SATURDAY MORNING!! There's things to be done in this town!! ha I honestly don't understand, if I didn't have to work, I, for sure, would not have been upright at that hour...
So anyways, I had my coffee & Linda had hers and we were in "the mode" we get in when there's business to do, instantly syncing into the rhythm we have with drop offs, pick-ups, talking customers, ringing phones, insurance companies, counting to 90, Linda and I's irrelevant conversations about camping and babies, and sticky labels.
However after a few hours, "Diarrhear" lady calls in. By the way, to add to this story, she is also the woman who didn't know her own birthdate nor did her daughter who was in yesterday to get her medicine, and she was the one I had to call all 5 help desks at Caremark for... MMmmm....she inquires if she's had anything called in yet today.
"Yes you have!" I say in my slow and pronounced voice that the geriatrics usually understand, "It's a Z-pack for your sinus infection!" (most commonly prescribed anti-biotic everrr...it's really hard core..you take 2 on the first day and one every day for 4 more days and bam you're done in 5 days compared to like 7, 10 or 28 like other anti-biotics)
She says, "Well that's very good!! that other one really gave me...{insert a long detailed reference to her diarrhear here}..
Ok, so I'll be right in"
When the very elderly lady comes in, I tell her as I'm checking her out that it's also kind of hard on your stomach...so be careful and eat it with something...
"Like crackers?"
"Sure...crackers are fine, just make sure your stomach has something in it"
"Bread?"
"Crackers, bread, toast, cereal....whatever you'd like to have in your stomach."
"Maybe some cereal with milk?"
"I suppose."
"Well, milk upsets my stomach sometimes."
"Ok...then maybe just toast or crackers."
"Oatmeal maybe? With only a little milk?"
"Well I mean...If that's what you want, sure that's fine!"
"I like oatmeal, but perhaps I'd better stick with toast.."
At this point I'm getting a tad irked, I felt that my time was being a tad wasted when there was so much to be done in my workday already...
"Toast is probably best, Mrs. _______"
"Okay...well I just want to say thank you so much, sweetie. You have just been so helpful to me and I told my daughter today just what a sweetheart you have been to us. God bless you, sweetie, and have a good day!"
aksdjflksdjfsdl;j awwwhhh.... frick....
I felt bad about feeling irritated. When she said that it kinda made the trouble worthwhile.
Now, this may suprise you but the highlight of my day was not that, but this:
A man who gets many prescriptions at our pharmacy has recently had trouble with his insurance company covering Celebrex, a pricey medication used for joint pain associated with arthritis. It's very very expensive so it needs a prior authorization from the doctor before his insurance will cover it. I've been on the phone with him off and on all week to see if it had gone through and now that the weekend's here we have to wait until Monday to try it again. So this guy comes in to pick his other various meds today. He's a pretty solid and big guy with an even bigger personality and presence. He's about in his 20s and looks like one of those loud, but funny and hardworking guys, who's everyone's buddy but just don't mess with him..ha.
I tell him that I tried his Celebrex today.
"Did it go through?"
"No unfortunately not, plus it's the weekend to we'll most likely just wait until Monday to run it. Have you called your doctor to inform him of the prior auth so he can call your insurance?"
"Yeah I did a while ago but I'll call him again today. Why doesn't the insurance company want to pay for it?"
I explained to him the various possibilities from cost to step therapy but ultimately that we didn't know why and he'd have to call his insurance to find out why they rejected it. "It's mainly about cost though, they want you to try less expensive meds first before they have to cover this pricey one"
"Oh," he said, and after a short pause he looked down.
"...Bastards," he whispered.
hahahaha....so funny to me for some reason, it made my day.
I'm out!
Friday, August 10, 2007
From Celebrex to Levitra & back again. (True Stories)
Today, I worked ten hours at the pharmacy.
Highlights include the woman who didn't have her insurance card and didn't know her birthday, so I had the task of maneuvering Caremark's help-desks to figure out which of 5 bin numbers she was listed under knowing only her name and address....yessss.
Also the woman who called telling me about her "diarrhear"....barf barf. If any of you are unaware, I'm not a medical professional. I don't know what to do for you over the phone, nor am I a doctor. I safely and accurately dispense exactly what your doctor prescribes, or of course the generic equivalent which is supposed to be covered by your plan for a $5 copay, but am I sure it's the same medication? yes I'm sure.. well why does it look so different? Does it have the same stuff in it? Yes it does. How do you know? It says so and it's regulated by the FDA! Good gracious....
I don't want to hear about why you got your vasectomy (true story), E.D., or hemorrhoids. Yes, I can see when you've last gotten your vicoden. I know that you've been getting it from a two different doctors in different towns and that you go to different pharmacies paying cash.... True story, I've caught 7 drug abusers who are now in jail.
Also true story, I once caught a nurse who was using her nurse practitioner's lisence to write alprazolam (Xanax)prescriptions for a chemo patient under her care who was a shut in. She got them filled under his name, & when the prescription ran out of refills, I called the house to inform him. A Hospice lady picked up the phone and told me he has never ever been on alprazolam before. It ended up that this nurse practitioner was taking the alprazolam.... She is in jail.
I love my job, but I don't love seeing people sick, or abusing. I love doing whatever I can to get a drug covered or get it done as fast as I can so you can go home as soon as you can. I love being good at what I do, but good gracious don't tell me about your anal blockage.
I will ralph.
Highlights include the woman who didn't have her insurance card and didn't know her birthday, so I had the task of maneuvering Caremark's help-desks to figure out which of 5 bin numbers she was listed under knowing only her name and address....yessss.
Also the woman who called telling me about her "diarrhear"....barf barf. If any of you are unaware, I'm not a medical professional. I don't know what to do for you over the phone, nor am I a doctor. I safely and accurately dispense exactly what your doctor prescribes, or of course the generic equivalent which is supposed to be covered by your plan for a $5 copay, but am I sure it's the same medication? yes I'm sure.. well why does it look so different? Does it have the same stuff in it? Yes it does. How do you know? It says so and it's regulated by the FDA! Good gracious....
I don't want to hear about why you got your vasectomy (true story), E.D., or hemorrhoids. Yes, I can see when you've last gotten your vicoden. I know that you've been getting it from a two different doctors in different towns and that you go to different pharmacies paying cash.... True story, I've caught 7 drug abusers who are now in jail.
Also true story, I once caught a nurse who was using her nurse practitioner's lisence to write alprazolam (Xanax)prescriptions for a chemo patient under her care who was a shut in. She got them filled under his name, & when the prescription ran out of refills, I called the house to inform him. A Hospice lady picked up the phone and told me he has never ever been on alprazolam before. It ended up that this nurse practitioner was taking the alprazolam.... She is in jail.
I love my job, but I don't love seeing people sick, or abusing. I love doing whatever I can to get a drug covered or get it done as fast as I can so you can go home as soon as you can. I love being good at what I do, but good gracious don't tell me about your anal blockage.
I will ralph.
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