Friday, March 12, 2010

An Ode To My Old Pharmacy Glass.

You stood strong and true. A barrier, and today they say a barrier is bad for our profession.

What they mean is if customers shout to me questions about the location of shoelaces from the other side of the store, they can schedule two less clerk hours, for I will be doing extra clerk duties amongst those for which I went to college.

The barrier is gone, yet I talked more to patients about drugs back in the time of the barrier.

Today I talk to customers about where in the mall they can buy stamps. And where the Subway is.

I abused the barrier, I admit. I used it to keep a radio playing in the background they could not hear.

I would say things like "Good morning you dumb son of a bitch" out loud as I waved as they walked by.

But I talked to them more about drugs back then than I ever have a chance to now.

Sometimes customers come up and put their hand in front of them, expecting a barrier to still be there, they'll usually ask a drug type question. The guy looking for the motor oil never expects a barrier.

It would be very unprofessional for me to walk to a private area to talk to a patient evidently, according to the people who designed my store. Or it would cut into my ability to multitask, I'll let you decide which was the more likely driver of the design. God forbid I would have had a door to close behind me today while the lady told me she was scared because her prior auth for suboxone had been denied. She was saying it in the most private area we offered, and if you were at the cash register and it was quiet you probably could have heard every word.

You can also hear every word I say on the phone all day long. Oh how I yearn to clean the glass just one more time. And be HIPAA compliant.

But I appear more accessible today, and appearances matter far more than reality.

I talked far more about drugs when I had a barrier.

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Come to Walgreens, there is a lovely glass barrier at the drive-thru. Really makes counseling fun, shouting into an intercom for two lanes of cars to hear, if they can over the noise of nearby traffic.

r0t said...

Oh, drugmonkey, barriers? You want more privacy? That kind of things costs money, you know. All the $25 transfer-in gift cards on earth are cheaper than facilitating more privacy.

Does it help that many consultation areas are places immediately between the cash registers and drop-off counters, allowing all techs and customers at any given station to hear what the fuck the pharmacist is talking about?

Does it make you feel warm and gooey on the inside?

YOU SAY YOU'RE ALSO TAKING VIAGRA???? WITH YOUR INCONTINENCE MEDS???

Anonymous said...

It also prevented the "hey...go distract her, I think if I jump right I can reach the box of syringes". Sigh.

Anonymous said...

So, um, how DOES that work with HIPAA? And does anyone report it? Seems like the phrase "five figure fine" would get management's attention.

Mildly Irritated Pharmacist said...

Another brilliant post. I work at an independent at a grocery store that has such little space that I've literally had customers loom over the counter to watch their pills be counted. Needless to say they can also charge the counter and interrupt me whenever they feel like it. That's always a nice courtesy to whomever's prescription I happen to be checking.

I also have to sneak into the break room to call to check the validity of... oh, let's say a Vicodin prescription that seems fishy or to tell a doctor I personally think it's b.s. that a patient dropped their Vicodin in a toilet. (I have, to date, never had a patient drop their furosemide down the sink. Odd.)

I would prefer the regional chain I also work at, where the pharmacist is located in the back. Problem is that the chain also has an ancient computer system, and keeps slashing our tech hours even though we need the tech hours, since our computer system is ancient.

Sometimes I wish I had a sub-80 IQ so that I could work in a corporate pharmacy office.

Unknown said...

Im late on this one but..we are being remodeled right now and are also losing our lovely glass. I have a feeling our beloved radio will go with it. People who get to design pharmaciea should be required to work in one first.

derek said...

Check out Health and Life's list of Top Pharmacist bloggers - I think you're right on the top of it =)

Unknown said...

So, I know this might open a big can of worms, but...how exactly do we get away with not being HIPAA compliant?

FIRST: Last I checked, we don't have notices posted saying, "by choosing to purchase your Rx here, you are waiving your right to privacy."

SECOND: We are required to provide RPh counseling on every new Rx...so, the customers don't really get the choice to say STOP TALKING about my sh!T! thats private."

Just curious, how we can get in so much trouble for it, but don't...everytime the Rph speaks to Lane 1 when there are other cars out there, "Rx for Mrs. Doe, you're getting ________,..."

Any ideas?

Rachael said...

I have never been in a pharmacy that didn't have a barrier. maybe that trend just hasn't reached our part of the country yet?