They Are Decent People
I have received a number of emails at my private email address (the one published here) from pharmacists (at least they claim to be pharmacists) who want to know why I allow pharmacists to camp out in the “Comments” and whine and complain. They tell me that the whiners and complainers should be doing something about it rather than just visiting sites where they can basically spend too much time metaphorically digitally jerking off .
I had one woman tell me that she would commit suicide rather than humiliate herself in such a manner. I asked and she told… She is the PIC of a pharmacy in a very small grocery chain in the middle of nowhere. The map shows that her town is almost 200 miles from the closest town with a chain drug store. I accused her of being insensitive. I told her that she needed to spend just one Monday morning, from 8:00 AM to 12:Noon, with the Lead Technician out sick, in your shoes. She wrote back that she had been a pharmacist for 12 years and, from experience, she knows that it cannot possibly be what you guys describe. I asked her why she did not express her feelings with a response in a comment here. She told me that she would not lower herself. She is a dignified woman who is professional in her work.
Poor girl. She just might commit suicide if she had to make her living at Big Evil or Big Stupid.
My knee-jerk was to just tell her to “Eat Me”, but I behaved. What I told her was this.
The pharmacists who write comments here are strong and decent people who see injustice and want to change it. They can’t help it that, right now, they are swimming in the rapids and barely know which end is up. Working conditions are one thing, but now they are seeing their brothers and sisters being killed off. They are being taken out back and being shot in the head. Damn good, veteran pharmacists are being fired simply because they are veterans. They are being fired because they are women. They are being let go because they have earned too much vacation, because the metrics suffer while they are counseling.
These pharmacists are good men and women who did absolutely nothing wrong. They are being treated like galley slaves, factory-floor piece-work workers. They are decent human beings who want to help people, but all the MBA Masters of the Universe see are “The numbers”.
So, I ended up advising that she Eat Me. I suggested that if she pay attention to the comments that some of you may want to explain further.
Guild anyone?
“Whistleblower” continues to offer his help with employment law. Why aren’t you contacting him if you have been terminated unfairly? Is it because you do not know how to contact him?
I found this message in the comments. Paul Garbarini is a Boston Lawyer on the faculty at Northeastern College of Pharmacy. (I believe that is current) He has been Legal Counsel for The Pharmacy Alliance since the beginning.
The Truth-
Contact me at 413-727-8191 regarding your desire to file a complaint with a BOP.
Paul Garbarini, R.Ph, Esq.
It is all out there, you guys. What was the quote from revolutionary times? We either all hang together or we will certainly hang separately. Jay Pee
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I heard that a couple of pharmacy schools are considering starting a residency in Rx dept repair/maintenance..
Steve, what will the classes be named? Something like Painting 101. Plumbing 101? For years we have had cabinets made of presswood, the backs of the drawers would come off, the front of the drawers would come off, the rails would come loose. You would not believe the many times I have taken a hammer and nails to those cabinets. Finally, one of them just fell apart and we threw it in the garbage. So, I suppose we should add Carpentry 101 to that list.
Since I am having so many problems with the obsolete printers, maybe there should be an Electronics 101 too? I am beginning to wonder if we need to take any pharmacy classes. With the coming over supply of pharmacists, we would no longer have to worry about a job. We could always start painting houses, doing plumbing, and building houses. Think about the job security! I bet we would get breaks. No more customers complaining, bitching, and harassing us. Ahhh…this sounds better and better. 
:)
The electronics would require a second residency of 1-2 yrs… and it would take that long because you would have to deal with telephones, computers, faxes, POS registers, copiers, alarms systems , lighting within the Rx dept…etc…etc..
The first residency could be called Rx dept basic facility management and the second could be called Rx dept advanced facility management.
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that would follow our current functions of “disease management” and medication therapy management (MTM)
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I think that you have hit on to something promising
Steve and Peon….I like your style!
War has been declared. The chains will manage you out by metrics. We have no choice but to fight to the death of the chains.
Steve & Peon,
Don’t the chains have pharmacists doing some of that electronic stuff already? It has been my experience that the pharmacist working at corporate are there because they can’t handle the retail side. I worked with several pharmacists who tried retail because $$$$ was better. However, they lasted 6 months to a year & went back to the office because of the stress!!!!
PS Ever watch undercover Boss? I think chains should try this to see what we deal with!! Oh wait, they don’t care!!!!!
If there were a certificate course in pharmacy computer/network/equipment/software maintenance/repair and the pay/benefits were right, I’d gladly return to my chosen field. Just not WAGs. I worked in their corporate HQ for 10 months and couldn’t wait to get out of that stultifying, backward-thinking, Jurassic place. Even my friend Charles Walgreen hated the place.
@Impatient.. here you go
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http://www.ashp.org/DocLibrary/MemberCenter/SOPIT/InformaticsBrochure.aspx
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pharmacy informatics
Evidently employees now have a right to post regarding the deplorable working conditions that they endure at their place of employment. Let me be the 1st to say, that until said company improves working conditions, allows a realistic labor model, for all of the BS that they want—look for a job elsewhere, not good here. You can fill in the blank as to what company that might be.
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/business/2012/10/fired-for-fb-tweets-nlrb-rulings-draw-lines/
Unhappy -
I’d love to see a retail pharmacy on Undercover boss. I would have loved to see some of those goons from corporate work the bench the first couple of weeks in January….with insurance changes, flu shot frenzy….no additional support staff. I’d like to see how their “metricS” would pan out!
Sounds deplorable to me Mookie, all good reasons to organize!
Anyone seen this site?
http://cvssucks.blogspot.com/2005/10/welcome-to-anti-cvs-blog-yo.html
You should try facebook and the cvs owns my soul website on there. Plenty of funny, yet true stories about how CVS keeps cutting hours, pay and increasing responsibilities and how they reward top mgt for the hard work of the pharmacy and store staff. The S in CVS should stand for servitude.
So, lets talk Pharmacy Alliance. I have followed the website & found it to be ineffectual. I can appreciate huffing & puffing and I’ve done my fair share of it myself. I walked away with my head held high after I was fired since I knew I had done the right thing. I, personally, don’t want to pursue legal assistance since I was ready to retire which probably made it easier for me to stand up for myself.
However, now we are looking at specific legal actions that require these pharmacists to give up thousands of dollars and/or their future employability. For myself, I’d rather support the organization specifically for monetary grant requests for those who are entering these legal battles.
Is there any way The Pharmacy Alliance can work toward setting up a legal defense fund? If now, how can we facilitate this? I’m hopeful your readers can give input.