This really puts the stimulus bill into prospective.
How does a guy like Chuck Schumer continue to be a senator? Maybe he is right, the majority of American people don't care, because they are completely indifferent and ignorant of what goes on beyond their reality TV and "E!" network. The American public schools have done their jobs. Several generations of oatmeal filled skulls now are registered to vote. The illiteracy rate in Detroit is now 49%.
I took an informal poll at work, and not one associate could tell me who Barney Frank is. I tried to explain but was asked "who the hell are Freddie Mac and Frannie Mae??"
I wish I could feel more optimistic about the future...
Friday, February 20, 2009
Saturday, February 14, 2009
OK, who let all the crazies out today?
Today I encountered some of the rudest, annoying, plain nutso customers ever. Perhaps they're a little down, because of their pathetic love lives with no one to spend Valentine's day with. It's probably the full moon, more realistically.
Issue #1 a customer had an RX transferred to WAG, but denied they did and screamed at my tech when she told her we would have to transfer it back. No clue what the big deal was??? Called, WAG, and indeed, the patient had transferred it and had it put on hold.
Issue #2 patient's daughter went nuts when we told her she had picked up the balance of an owe. She then got crazier, insisting the doctor had written for twice as much as the doctor actually did write for. Try to refill it and get a big ol "refill too soon". The daughter would not allow us to investigate and let us call her back, "want it fixed right now! while I am on the phone with you!" Great, tech was on the phone for 20 minutes, workflow backs waaaay up. You would think 10 grams of Silvadene per day would be plenty... go figure.
Issue #3 patient comes in with generic percocet vial, wonders why there is a red circle around the quantity. "I've never seen this before." Well, whether or not you are blind or have a bad memory, it doesn't change the fact that I am NOT giving you 5 pills you swear you were shorted. Sure, you can have corporate's phone number and address, knock yourself out lady.
Issue #4 probably the most frustrating exchange of the day:
me: Thank you for calling 'UnPCRPh's pharmacy', this is 'UnPCRPh'.
caller: I want to know how much this prescription for my son will be on my insurance.
me: Is this a refill of something you have gotten before?
caller: No, its a new prescription.
me: Well, you should call your insurance company or you could bring it in and we can try and fill it.
caller: Why, can't you do this over the phone?
me: Can you even read the prescription?
caller: Its printed out.
me: against my better judgement, but trying to be courteous OK if you can read to me what it says. What is the drug?
caller: *says something unintelligible*
me: Could you spell that?
caller: *spelling very quickly* A-L-T-A-V-A-X Could I just speak to the pharmacist?
me: I am the pharmacist. Would you please spell that again?
caller: A-L-T-A-B-A-X Are you sure you're the pharmacist?
me: Quite sure. Who is the patient?
caller: gives name
me: directions?
caller: Apply 10mg twice daily for 5 days
me: 10mg?
caller: that's what it says!
me: OK who is the prescriber?
caller: What does that mean?
me: Who wrote the prescription? The physician who wrote it?
caller: You know what? You are really annoying to me! I am just going to call some other pharmacy!
me: OK please do Don't do me any favors, lady. Gee I was just going out of my way to do something I normally don't do, and now I remember why.
CLICK!
Like I said, bunch o'crazies out there today. I haven't decided if I am going back tomorrow, yet...
Issue #1 a customer had an RX transferred to WAG, but denied they did and screamed at my tech when she told her we would have to transfer it back. No clue what the big deal was??? Called, WAG, and indeed, the patient had transferred it and had it put on hold.
Issue #2 patient's daughter went nuts when we told her she had picked up the balance of an owe. She then got crazier, insisting the doctor had written for twice as much as the doctor actually did write for. Try to refill it and get a big ol "refill too soon". The daughter would not allow us to investigate and let us call her back, "want it fixed right now! while I am on the phone with you!" Great, tech was on the phone for 20 minutes, workflow backs waaaay up. You would think 10 grams of Silvadene per day would be plenty... go figure.
Issue #3 patient comes in with generic percocet vial, wonders why there is a red circle around the quantity. "I've never seen this before." Well, whether or not you are blind or have a bad memory, it doesn't change the fact that I am NOT giving you 5 pills you swear you were shorted. Sure, you can have corporate's phone number and address, knock yourself out lady.
Issue #4 probably the most frustrating exchange of the day:
me: Thank you for calling 'UnPCRPh's pharmacy', this is 'UnPCRPh'.
caller: I want to know how much this prescription for my son will be on my insurance.
me: Is this a refill of something you have gotten before?
caller: No, its a new prescription.
me: Well, you should call your insurance company or you could bring it in and we can try and fill it.
caller: Why, can't you do this over the phone?
me: Can you even read the prescription?
caller: Its printed out.
me: against my better judgement, but trying to be courteous OK if you can read to me what it says. What is the drug?
caller: *says something unintelligible*
me: Could you spell that?
caller: *spelling very quickly* A-L-T-A-V-A-X Could I just speak to the pharmacist?
me: I am the pharmacist. Would you please spell that again?
caller: A-L-T-A-B-A-X Are you sure you're the pharmacist?
me: Quite sure. Who is the patient?
caller: gives name
me: directions?
caller: Apply 10mg twice daily for 5 days
me: 10mg?
caller: that's what it says!
me: OK who is the prescriber?
caller: What does that mean?
me: Who wrote the prescription? The physician who wrote it?
caller: You know what? You are really annoying to me! I am just going to call some other pharmacy!
me: OK please do Don't do me any favors, lady. Gee I was just going out of my way to do something I normally don't do, and now I remember why.
CLICK!
Like I said, bunch o'crazies out there today. I haven't decided if I am going back tomorrow, yet...
Saturday, February 7, 2009
If we had some Global Warming... I wouldn't have 2 Subarus stuck in my driveway
Well, there's been snow on the ground for over a month now. The earth has been cooling since 1998. It has cooled so much, it negates the increased temperatures of the prior 100 years.
Funny how now the key phrase is Climate Change, not Global Warming. Hey if your theories are flawed then just re-engineer the language, works for me! So, when exactly did the climate not change? We live in a dynamic world. Ice ages, Super Volcanoes, asteroid impacts, dinosaurs... and you think driving a hybrid or a few plastic bottles are going to make a difference?
You know, Greenland used to be green! So, that right there tells you things change and human activity has nothing to do with it. 31,000 scientists agree. Not that science is based on consensus or anything *cough*... like some people say. I'm just sayin' *shrugs*
The Minnesotans for Global Warming recently had a parody of Van Morrison's "Tupelo Honey", called "Two Below Honey", removed from You Tube for copyright violation. I heard it on the Jim Quinn Show AKA America's Morning Show on Wednesday. Good stuff. These guys have a couple other parodies on You Tube that are worth hearing.
This one has a Bare Naked Ladies sound to it, very nice.
This one is a parody of Imagine. I especially like the photo of Al Gore breathing fire.
Cold climates are much more energy intensive than hot climates. Just something to think about. So get yourself an SUV and start using aerosol deodorant...
Funny how now the key phrase is Climate Change, not Global Warming. Hey if your theories are flawed then just re-engineer the language, works for me! So, when exactly did the climate not change? We live in a dynamic world. Ice ages, Super Volcanoes, asteroid impacts, dinosaurs... and you think driving a hybrid or a few plastic bottles are going to make a difference?
You know, Greenland used to be green! So, that right there tells you things change and human activity has nothing to do with it. 31,000 scientists agree. Not that science is based on consensus or anything *cough*... like some people say. I'm just sayin' *shrugs*
The Minnesotans for Global Warming recently had a parody of Van Morrison's "Tupelo Honey", called "Two Below Honey", removed from You Tube for copyright violation. I heard it on the Jim Quinn Show AKA America's Morning Show on Wednesday. Good stuff. These guys have a couple other parodies on You Tube that are worth hearing.
This one has a Bare Naked Ladies sound to it, very nice.
This one is a parody of Imagine. I especially like the photo of Al Gore breathing fire.
Cold climates are much more energy intensive than hot climates. Just something to think about. So get yourself an SUV and start using aerosol deodorant...
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
The Glamourous World of Pharmacy or the Ghetto Pharmacy Contest
To get the politically incorrect reference out of the way first, Wikipedia describes a ghetto as a "portion of a city in which members of a minority group live especially because of social, legal, or economic pressure." As well as,
-"When the majority uses compulsion (typically violence, hostility, or legal barriers) to force minorities into particular areas. (sounds like pharmacists)
-When economic conditions make it difficult for minority members to live in non-minority areas."
Being the institutionalized health professionals we are, we tolerate a lot in our work places. In fact, many of us work in completely undignified, non-ergonomic, and down right filthy, dilapidated facilities.
The other day someone was mentioning Ben Franklin's 13 Virtues. Rule 10 was elaborated on as referring to home or business:
"10. Cleanliness: Tolerate no uncleanness in body, clothes or habitation."
Recently, I went to work for a new chain. I was asked to fill in at a nearby store. Now this particular location has been rented by multiple pharmacies over the last 40 years. I have never seen a more ghetto pharmacy! I went in to retrieve the key from the store manager. I found him sitting on a stool in a "broom closet" with no door, his feet resting on the safe, a phone propped on his shoulder. Actually, I have not one closet in my house as small as this so called "office", although the bathroom linen closet comes close.
The back room walls looked as though someone had tried to drive a truck through the skinny hall, or perhaps an orc battle had taken place in this dungeon; 4 different colors of paint peeking out of deep gouges in the walls, who's primary color now was a shade deeper than hospital green *barf*.
I unlocked the pharmacy, went in and saw the filthiest linoleum floors ever. Luckily, this was very hidden from the public, because of the clever design of putting the pharmacy area way back behind the cash registers, in a separate room with a large pass through window. This made it easy to get adequate exercise when coming out to speak to patients regularly. It also provided good shelter and protection if someone decided to try and jump the pharmacist. They would most certainly have to jump a counter, a wall and take out a cashier, too. That was a plus.
I could go on, but I am more inspired and anxious to see the working conditions you tolerate.
Send me photos at UnPCRPh at gmail dot com
Please try not to photograph the company logo or any other identifying features of the company you work for. Many chains have a no photographing policy, probably for the reason that they may be humiliated and embarrassed. Truthfully, I think they ought to be. I'll post the best here. There is no prize, other than the honor of your work place appearing here.
-"When the majority uses compulsion (typically violence, hostility, or legal barriers) to force minorities into particular areas. (sounds like pharmacists)
-When economic conditions make it difficult for minority members to live in non-minority areas."
Being the institutionalized health professionals we are, we tolerate a lot in our work places. In fact, many of us work in completely undignified, non-ergonomic, and down right filthy, dilapidated facilities.
The other day someone was mentioning Ben Franklin's 13 Virtues. Rule 10 was elaborated on as referring to home or business:
"10. Cleanliness: Tolerate no uncleanness in body, clothes or habitation."
Recently, I went to work for a new chain. I was asked to fill in at a nearby store. Now this particular location has been rented by multiple pharmacies over the last 40 years. I have never seen a more ghetto pharmacy! I went in to retrieve the key from the store manager. I found him sitting on a stool in a "broom closet" with no door, his feet resting on the safe, a phone propped on his shoulder. Actually, I have not one closet in my house as small as this so called "office", although the bathroom linen closet comes close.
The back room walls looked as though someone had tried to drive a truck through the skinny hall, or perhaps an orc battle had taken place in this dungeon; 4 different colors of paint peeking out of deep gouges in the walls, who's primary color now was a shade deeper than hospital green *barf*.
I unlocked the pharmacy, went in and saw the filthiest linoleum floors ever. Luckily, this was very hidden from the public, because of the clever design of putting the pharmacy area way back behind the cash registers, in a separate room with a large pass through window. This made it easy to get adequate exercise when coming out to speak to patients regularly. It also provided good shelter and protection if someone decided to try and jump the pharmacist. They would most certainly have to jump a counter, a wall and take out a cashier, too. That was a plus.
I could go on, but I am more inspired and anxious to see the working conditions you tolerate.
Send me photos at UnPCRPh at gmail dot com
Please try not to photograph the company logo or any other identifying features of the company you work for. Many chains have a no photographing policy, probably for the reason that they may be humiliated and embarrassed. Truthfully, I think they ought to be. I'll post the best here. There is no prize, other than the honor of your work place appearing here.
Something to cheer you up
So, you say the state of the economy has you down? You say, "UnPC-RPh, why are you always so serious?"
Sometimes you just have to laugh or you would cry. Enjoy.
Sometimes you just have to laugh or you would cry. Enjoy.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
