MY
JOB MAKES ME HATE YOU.... An Onyx Reader
Editorial
by Mokeefe
Okay,
I don’t hate you personally - I hope, but I get very tired. I
work in a retail pharmacy in a large chain. I am the cashier. I have
aspirations to become a Tech and hopefully earn a living wage, but for
the time being, I am the cashier.
I
do not fill, process, authorize, or otherwise have anything to do with
your prescription other than ringing up the final cost to you - as determined
by your insurance company (or not). I do not personally control the
retail price, the insurance co-pay, or the politics of Government-based
entitlement programs and what they cover or do not cover, nor do I have
any say in the staffing needs and shortcomings at my workplace. Perhaps
you should contact the Board of Directors of my home company and convince
them to lower the stock-dividends to provide for better employee staffing
and pay - but they could care less.
If
it were up to me, all of your medicine would be free, ready in five
minutes, and I would be paid a gazillion dollars an hour to listen to
your bellyaching (but there would be none - if the first two wishes
were granted). However, in the REAL WORLD, it is like this:
1.
Your children's vitamins are not a medical emergency. Just
because this is a convenient time for you to pick them up, asking
to get your fill immediately means that someone that dropped their
prescription off earlier than you will wait longer. Number of "Wait
to fill" requests daily - at least 40; Medical/Pain/Illness requirements
- about five.
2.
Just because your doctor "called it in," you are not more
important than the people that came here directly
from their doctors office and "dropped it off!" Get over
yourself and wait just like everyone else.
3.
We are not responsible for the fact that you have no more refills.
Call your own doctor. Just because we extend the courtesy of faxing
your physician when you are out of refills - we are not responsible
for the fact that they don't reply, or want you make an appointment
or whatever. Nor are we responsible for having to contact them or
YOU to let you know they have not called us yet to refill your prescription.
That is for your well-being, and it's your responsibility. People
yell in my face for not acting as their personal assistant.
4.
January is a key month in benefit plans. Many companies
alter their coverage and may change what they consider "preferred"
medications. They may increase your deductibles and/or co-pays. This
is not our fault. Read your literature. Get or read the list of allowed
medications. DO NOT RANT AT ME. When you get new coverage - BRING
AND SUBMIT your ID card. DO NOT blame me if you don't and then have
to wait while your Pharmacist submits your new information.
5.
Despite the fact that I have the sometimes miserable experience
of serving you-I am in NO WAY less intelligent than you -
in fact, probably more so. Do NOT suggest I am stupid because you
are displeased. I try and succeed at being very pleasant through
99.9% of my daily job interactions, I take pride in and try to do
a great job, and I genuinely care and commiserate with the personal
suffering of most of my customers. I do everything I can to be efficient
and quick.
6.
Please, stop telling me that your prescription should be done faster
because it's "only five pills," "in
a blister pack," or "just an eye drop." It is a prescription.
It has to be processed, authorized, labeled, etc. - just like everything
else.
7.
When I ask for your date of birth and telephone number it is not
for idle curiosity. I don't want to hear "I'm in the computer."
I may be familiar with you, but it is not a matter of trust. Nor
do I care how old you are. Believe it or not, somebody else may
share your name - even your birth date. We need to match you up
to your account profile so that we can be certain that the medication
you are being prescribed does not adversely react to another medication
you may be taking. We need to match you to your insurance info -
your address. Don't be cute. We have THOUSANDS of customers in this
store alone - not to mention the possible MILLION or more nationwide.
I cannot personally remember your birth date; you are not my relative.
8.
We are not a storage facility. There are laws as to
how long we can hold a prescription once it is filled. Insurance companies
do not want to pay for stuff you never pick up. The prescription charges
to the insurance carriers must be reversed and the medication returned
to stock.
If you
order something, pick it up. Or call if you cannot. Don't show up three
weeks later and get angry because you have to wait for it to be done
again. We didn't care to waste Pharmacist and tech time filling it,
then having to return it to stock. Our system generates an automatic
call to you after EIGHT days. Our job was done - and we don't care if
you went on vacation and were planning to pick it up in two weeks. Our
job was done.
Okay. I
feel better now.
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