I posted previously about customers that are just downright mean for no reason. It's like somebody pissed in their Kool Aid and they just want to take it out on you. I had a lady call today for refills. She had her refills numbers on her script and rattled the first one off rapidly to me then said something about Amber Pine.
I took Amber Pine to be this women's name so I was confused when another person's name showed up on the refill screen. I thought, Hey, I probably just put in the numbers wrong, let's ask again nicely. This cue an exasperated sigh from the other end of the phone and then again the rapid succession of numbers and something about Amber Pine. Still no Amber Pine showing up so I ask the lady for her birthday so I can look up her entire profile. This started off a whole slew of ranting.
"Why are you asking me my numbers again?! Your pharmacy is always screwing up every order that I call in!!! What the hell is wrong with you? Where do you come from, girl?! My name is {name I had looked up previously}." I apologized and stated that I thought her name was Amber Pine.
"No!!! That's my pills! Amber Pine!!! I don't know how to say the damn medication names, that's your job! My name is {customer's name}, get it right for once!" Her medication was for amlodipine (am-low-dih-peen). So the mystery of Amber Pine has been solved.
"Well now I know your name." You only restated it about 20 times.
Cue her ranting for about another 10-15 seconds about how incompetent we are and how we still "don't do a damn thing right."
"I also need my metafoeman. That's for my diabetes." Metformin (met-fore-men) was indeed for diabetes. I said I brought her metformin up in the system.
"Yes. Metafoeman. That's for my diabetes." She said it in a way to imply that I didn't know what one of the oldest diabetes medication on the market was. Thank God I have customers like her!!! If I didn't, how the hell would I know about any medication. Jeez she should just TAKE OVER MY JOB!!!1111one
After giving her a pick up time. She promptly hung up. No thank you. No, hey I'm sorry I rubbed sand all in my vagina this morning and I'm being a bitch to you. Nothing.
I don't understand how people are like this. I really don't. Part of me wonders how her life is right now to make her so incredibly miserable that she has to take it out on retail employees that can't fight back. Was she always like this? Why so angry? Who knows...
Another call Friday my coworker took. It was for refills as well. Instead of angry old lady, this was lonely old lady. This is the person that tells you their entire life story while on the phone for you. This is usually when you are an hour behind filling prescriptions, there are 4 other phone calls you need to take, and there is a screaming child in the waiting room because his insurance rejected his ear infection medication.
My coworker proceeds to stay on the phone for a good 10 minutes when it should have taken less than a minute. The last thing I heard coworker say was "Yes I hope you do indeed get your air conditioner fixed." I laughed at his misfortune. He flips me off. That is true pharmacy love.
As frustrating as these calls are, I really feel sorry for the people. These are the same older people you see eating completely alone in Luby's restaurants. Their children are probably halfway across the country, their spouse and a good portion of their friends have died, and they're lonely. If anything I hope that somehow, the lady telling coworker about her air conditioner breaking down maybe, possibly made this woman's day.
For another amusing tidbit, dad calls the pharmacy because he found an unlabeled bottle of pills in his son's pants. Dad already states that his son "will probably be in a heap of trouble." I bring up the pill identifier. Oh wonderful it's for generic Lortab 7.5 (a narcotic pain reliever). The man thanks me for my help and ends the phone call with, "BOBBY! YOU GET YOUR ASS IN HERE RIGHT NOW!"
A lady called asking if we could flavor her child's amoxicillin suspension after she had already left the pharmacy. Some children's liquid medication (clindamycin anyone) taste absolutely god-awful. So...we have a system in place that we can flavor the meds for a small fee. Amoxicillin was probably the favorite of children everywhere. It was pink, bubble-gum flavored, and, according to my mom, "stained the shit out of white carpet." Well now we are getting dye free amoxicillin. It's just white when mixed, which apparently makes it flavorless according to said lady. "It's white, it can't be flavored anything!!!" The pharmacist had to spend about a minute explaining to the woman that just because it wasn't pink colored, it can still have flavoring.
That made me have a nostalgic moment for Crystal Pepsi. Anybody remember that stuff? It was a mind fuck in a bottle.
I'm working the midnight shift tomorrow. I bet you a free apple pie that I'll sell at least 5 emergency contraceptives. Party all Saturday night and then spend 45 costly dollars on your mistake Sunday.
-Pillpharmer aus
1 comment:
Mary, you have just solidified my intention to never work retail pharmacy when I'm done. Thank you, my friend, for helping keep me on the right path! You are freakin hilarious!
Gary
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