I want Lansoprazole!

A weirdo lady came into the pharmacy yesterday. She was a bit reluctant to give us her Medicare and pension card coz she thinks its a 'breach of privacy'. Pay the full price then if you don't give us your card! 

Anyway, script said Lansoprazole Tabs 30mg. Dr didn't specify a brand so we gave her our preferred generic brand Zopral ODT 30mg Tabs. 

She was so angry when she saw the box.

She: No!!! This is not Lansoprazole! Give me Lansoprazole!

Pharmacist: But this is lansoprazole. Lansoprazole is just the ingredient name. There are a lot of brands on the market. 

She: No I don't care. You must give me what the doctor writes on the prescription! 

Pharm: This is what the dr wrote on the prescription. See it says here Lansoprazole (points to ingredient name on box)

Lady refuses to look.

She: Yeh I know. I want the one that says Lansoprazole! 

Pharm: (decides to show her the brands we have, including Zoton the originator brand) Is it this one? 

She: No! I want Lansoprazole! It says Lansoprazole! You just don't get it. 

Pharmacy manager intervenes. 

He: She gave you the write one. Lansoprazole is just the ingredient, not a brand name. If you look on the box here, that's what it says - lansoprazole.

Lady again refuses to look.

She: Give me back my script! You guys don't know what you are doing and not being helpful at all.

Manager: well we are. We all are here trying to explain to you, but you're refusing to listen the pharmacists who know what they're doing and you don't even want to look at the box. We can't help you, you're refusing to be helped and you're just beyond help. 

LOL We all cracked up laughing!

She: You all are dumb! I'm taking my script elsewhere. 

We laughed even louder as she walked out because she was being such an idiot. 

Change of mind with Maxamox

A new customer comes in with two prescriptions for 2 different people. Computer generated prescription for Maxamox 500mg/5ml syrup. I asked her for a medicare and health care card, she only gives me a Medicare card. I asked her did she want both of these medicines and she says yes.

After we dispensed it, she goes to the counter to pay. Furiously she comes back to the dispensary because she thinks we've overcharged her. 

Me: "That's the right price on Medicare card."
She: I usually pay $5.90 for these! And also I didn't know they were the same thing. I only want one bottle.
Me: You didn't give me your health care card when I asked you, so do you have one?
She: Yes but I forgot to bring it!
Me: Ok that's fine. I'll call Medicare and see if I can get your health care card number from them. You'll have to give me a minute so I can give them a phone call.
She: Nop I don't want it. I don't have time. I want my script back and i'm going to another pharmacy. 
Me: Your syrup has already been mixed. We won't accept any returns for these. I'll call Medicare for you.
She: Also I only wanted one, not two. I didn't realise it was the same thing. 
Me: You said you wanted both prescriptions. It's written pretty clearly its the same thing. You could've told us beforehand. It's too late now. Plus one bottle is not enough for two people. 

So we call Medicare and they only have health care card for one of the people. And she just got angry she leaves without her meds and script. 

LOL....Dude, should've been more organised and bring your cards in. When you're going to a new pharmacy, don't expect everyone to know your health care card number. And don't you know English? Read the script before you buy it. Its obviously the same item. 

Every medicine should be covered on PBS

Lady comes in with a script for Elocon cream and Zyrtec syrup for her daughter. She has a Centrelink health care card. Elocon was covered and Zyrtec was not. 

She got soooo upset. "Why is Zyrtec not covered?"

Me: "Not everything is covered. The government and Medicare decides what's covered."
She: "Everything should be covered - its a medicine. People get sick and need it."
Me: "If everything was covered, the country would go broke."
She: "No I don't believe that."
Me: "It's true. The country's has a lot of debt at the moment. You just don't see it. Anyway, you have some medicines that are covered, some that are not. That makes a balance. Some people don't even get a discount. At least you do."


Seriously, so stingy. Be grateful for what you have. Another selfish person thinking for themselves again. I'm sick, I still need to buy meds, noone feels sorry for me. 

Stupid questions customers ask the pharmacist

Pharmacist: this is an antibiotic. Take it three times a day until finished.
Customer: Is that in the morning? OR Do I split the tablet into 3 parts and take it 3 times a day? OR You mean morning, lunch and dinner? 

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Pharmacist: this is a cream. just apply it twice a day. 
Customer: apply before or after shower?

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Pharmacist: Make sure you take Nurofen after food. 
Customer: So do I take this before or after food? 

Price Disclosure

News bulletin had an article on price disclosure. 

In a loophole:
"Why are medicines in Australia much more expensive than those medicines overseas?"
"The government's recent changes in price disclosure will help reduce prices of medicines." 
"Price disclosure is a benefit to the community and its a good thing."

PRO-Government. 

Now if patients were so concerned about the prices of medicines, why didn't they promote generic substitution. Overseas markets probably stock a different brand from us. Choose the generic brand if you want to help the healthcare system. But some people are selfish and don't care. 

Secondly, Australia has higher standards of living and we pay a lot of tax. The manufacturer don't just simply make the medicine, they hire a lot of people to run the plant. Wages are higher in Australia. Research team, development team, manufacturing team, marketing team, sales team, accounts team....... who pays them. You lower the prices of medicines, all those ppl will be out of a job.

Thirdly, price disclosure means less profits for pharmacies. Result will be cost-cutting, bankruptcy, more pharmacies closing down, more pharmacists being out of a job. 


End point, the government wants to destroy the pharmaceutical industry and healthcare system because it's costing them a lot of money.

Well then how about thinking about being a bit more strict on welfare and issuing health care cards, coz there's why too many ppl doing dodgies having health care cards when I believe they shouldn't. You have a health care card but you drive a Merc or Audi, you can't afford to buy meds? So many dodgies out there Centrelink doesn't bother to crack down. Close the loopholes!

IMO, misleading article. Not explaining the implications. Not offering other alternatives. 

Sign the petition in your local pharmacy NOW

Lipitor for free

Lady comes in with a hand-written script for Lipitor 40mg. 

Asked for a Medicare and pensioner/health care card. She only produces a Medicare. 

Asked her to clarify the address.

She: "Why? Isn't it on the script?"

Me: "It is but its not very clear." (its handwritten all mushed up)

She grabs the pen from my hand and writes in BIG LETTERS ON THE TOP, PRESSING DOWN THE PEN really hard onto the paper like an angry child. 

So I dispense the script, give her Lipitor. $36.10 thank you. 

She: "Why did you charge me $36.10? I usually get it for free from my other chemist."

Me: "Free? No its not free unless you have a Safetynet card. Do you have a Safetynet card?"

She whips out her purse and shows her pension card through the purse window. 

She: "No I got this."

Me: "Yeh that's a pension card. That will make it $5.90 but definitely not free. To get it for free you need this Safetynet card." (which I show her and wave in her face)

She: "Yeh well i don't understand. Anyway, you are overcharging me and I don't want it anymore. You never asked me for those cards before and I don't like it."

Me: "Fair enough. (i delete the script). Here you go, you don't have the cards you can't get it for free. You know when you go to other pharmacies, you need to show them your cards, otherwise noone's gonna know what price to give you. Have a nice day." Give the script and I walk away. 

I think she wanted to say something as a comeback but I was already serving another customer. If she's not happy, she can leave.

Comes back later with Lipitor from another pharmacy: "I want to speak to your boss."

Complains to my boss about me overcharging her. Told my boss she wanted it for free but does not have a SN card. She says the other pharmacy charged her $5.90. I said that's because of the pension card, you never gave me a pension card at the beginning and you were expecting it to be for free. You wanted it for free, I can't give it to you for free. So transaction was cancelled. What are you  complaining for? 

She says I was mistreating her coz I have something against you.

Boss laughed and said "well if you say so then there's nothing more i can say. Because they don't even know you, there's no reason for them to. but you're entitled to your opinions, you are entitled to go to other pharmacies so be it. (she was threatening not to come here again).We can't offer the medicine for free. If the other pharmacy is, and you don't have a safetynet card then what they are doing is illegal."

She wanted to complain to vent out. My boss ain't gonna give it her for free and my boss ain't gonna tell me off either. So her complaint wasn't successful. Threatened not to shop around here. Don't care because you're not a regular and you don't live in the area. 

She has attitude problems anyway. Yeh I do have something against you. Your stuck-up face. 

Calling Department of Health to complain about GPs prescribing unauthorised medicines

A man comes in with a private script for Roaccutane 10mg.

Noticed it was the same doctor that we called last time regarding the same problem we had with another patient. 

The doctor didn't care when we told him the legislation. He didn't believe us. His argument was 'if i wasn't allowed, then why does my prescribing software allow me to do that. You don't know what you're talking about and they've changed the legislation." 

We refused to dispense it. 

One week later, the doctor writes Roaccutane script for another patient. Didn't even bother calling the doctor again. Just told the patient the dr is not authorized and they need to go see a specialist. They go why? "My explanation was simply: Your doctor is a GP. There are some medicines that they can't prescribe. There are some rules that GPs need to follow." In other words, stop thinking your doctor is GOD and prescribe anything. 

After that, I decide to call Department of Health to complain and confirm the legislation. Legislation still remains the same - no changes. Told the Duty Pharmaceutical Officer there's been an increased influx of those scripts written by GPs in the area. DPO said just refer them to the legislation. I said I have but the doctors haven't heard of it. I told DPO they should print out a letter or something to clarify this with the doctors in our area coz they don't believe us. Some even prescribe Concerta and Ritalin which is a health issue to the public. She asked me if there are specific doctors that do it, I go there's a lot of them so there's no one particular one. 

Hopefully they will do something about it. 

If that Roaccutane doctor does it again, I'll be reporting him. I told him once, if he doesn't get it, let the Department of Health deal with it. 

Takes them one year after they bought medicine to complain

It never ceases to amaze me how people complain about unreasonable things.

A couple comes into the pharmacy the other day to complain that the box of medicine they bought was EMPTY. 

It was Nurofen 400mg which we stopped stocking about a year ago. Nurofen 400mg was S3 so its kept behind the shelf. It also had our dispensing label on it. The couple had bought it one year ago and only now they came back to say its empty. 

One year ago - seriously. You leave a packet of pain killers in the back of your cabinet and don't open it. Was the seal broken when you bought it? No. Was it tampered with? Can't be coz its S3 and its behind the shelf. 

How do customers expect us to investigate and believe them? You must prove it. You got no proof. How do you prove that you didn't take it and finish all the tablets within that one year frame? 

In the end they're complaining, manager said just give them a few tablets of Brufen to shut them up. Cheap anyway. But geez, they complain and wasn't happy when the manager said its not our fault. You're just stupid enough to come one year later to complain......