Superhero Pharmacy Techs

I've parodied the superhero pharmacist more than a few times on The Cynical Pharmacist, but we all know that most retail pharmacies would cease to operate if it weren't for the often unappreciated hard work of superhero pharmacy technicians, the pharmacists' sidekicks.

So, although I've worked with more than a handful of sociopathic techs who hatefully went out of their way to make my job unnecessarily harder, or to intentionally do me harm for no rational reason at all, here's a satirical shout-out to those superhero pharmacy technicians who are also being replaced by technology, but make a career in pharmacy much more enjoyable for the overburdened pharmacist.

Although you may be often underpaid, and sometimes abused too, thank you for your support!

The Original Batman

I just watched the 1943 movie series, Batman - back in the day when chasing the villains, catching the criminals, and competing with other superheroes wasn't nearly as sophisticated as it is today. It was a time when imagination originated from the mind, instead of the eyes.

It was a time when character development was still in it's infancy, when movie thugs and henchmen were middle-aged white men, gas was cheap, and America's evil arch-enemies came from Asia and Europe, instead of from the Middle East. It was also a time of technological innocence.

It was a time way before the advent of computers and the internet, when apps such as TV and atom bombs were still in development, and the predominate work tools for superheroes and their enemies included utility belts, truth serum, Radium handguns, and electronically brain-controlled Zombies.

It was a time some pharmacists remember being referred to as "the good old days" of pharmacy.

And it was also the first time Batman realized that if he was going to survive in his profession, that he needed to continually upgrade his utility belt, much like technologically-advanced pahrnicists of today.

But, don't just take my word for it. Watch the first chapter in the series to see for yourself -





Watch the rest of the entire original 1943 movie series on YouTube.

Edward Hall | Night Shift Pharmacist

Before you start bitching about how the over-night pharmacist is getting paid more than you are, has a much easier workload than you do, but doesn't seem to be getting the job done, just remember that there's a very good reason why you're not working that shift. Working nights affects your sleep!

Shift work sleep disorders (SWSD) occur when people work during the night while most other people sleep. When you have to work during the time your body normally wants to sleep, you disrupt your internal body clock (circadian rhythm) which then wreaks havoc upon your entire body.

SWSD is characterized by insomnia and excessive sleepiness. People with the disorder are more accident prone, irritable, and less able to concentrate. Lack of sleep is also linked to depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and other mental disorders. And your mind starts to play tricks on you.

But those aren't the only negative health effects associated with working the night shift.

There's a good reason why it's also called the Graveyard Shift. Researchers recently conducted a meta-analysis summarizing 34 separate studies involving more than two-million shift workers, and published the results in the British Medical Journal.

Although shift work was not associated with increased rates of mortality, this study found that when compared to regular daytime workers, the risk for heart attack increased by 41 percent in those working the night shift. So, cut these guys some slack and don't push them over the edge.

Combine these known health factors with the stresses of working 7 straight 12-hour shifts (or more), an overwhelming workload, and having to work with a nurse or a technician who seems to have it out for you, then you have a recipe for disaster in the works. But, don't just take my word for it.

See how working the night shift seriously affected this poor pharmacist's life -

A Lifetime Of Pharmacy In One Song

I think this song provides a good description of how some retail pharmacists may view their career progression - from the first ten years, through the next decade or two, and then into the final cut.

[ALL original video links removed by sources]

I'm Just A Professional

A 50-year-old Canton pharmacist who owned and operated 26 pharmacies in the metro-Detroit area was sentenced to 17 years in prison, U.S. Attorney Barbara L. McQuade announced today.

According to the USDOJ press release -

Evidence presented at a six-week jury trial concluding in August 2012 showed between 2006 and 2011, the pharmacies billed Medicare and Medicaid more than $57 million. At least 25% of those billings were for drugs that were either medically unnecessary never dispensed. Additional amounts were fraudulently billed to private insurers such as Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan.

The pharmacies operated on a business model that paid kickbacks to physicians in exchange for writing prescriptions for expensive medications. The affiliated doctors would also write prescriptions for controlled substances, without regard to medical necessity, which would be filled at the pharmacies and distributed to paid "patients" and patient recruiters. The expensive non-controlled medications would be billed but not dispensed.

Of the 26 defendants charged in the original indictment in this case, 20 defendants have either pleaded guilty or been convicted at trial. Six defendants are scheduled for trial in June. Out of 12 pharmacists charged, 11 have been convicted at trial or pleaded guilty, with one waiting to be tried. Out of four doctors charged, two have pleaded guilty, with two waiting to be tried. (my emphasis)

I know that I've discussed this topic before, and probably will again, but if this USDOJ press release doesn't illustrate the legal consequences of difficult choices a healthcare professional faces in the workplace every day, and learning to say "NO!" when it's appropriate, then I don't now what else will.

Attempting to rationalize poor choices by saying "Everyone else is doing it.", using the excuse that "I'm just doing my job." or that "I'm just a professional following orders." isn't going to save your ass.

I understand that there a lot of inequities in both the healthcare and judicial systems, and that you may be thinking that you're in desperate financial circumstances, but the Government is CRACKING DOWN HARD on both healthcare fraud AND prescription drug abuse. Don't let our job defeat you.

Make the right choices and don't put yourself in a position that you may later come to regret.

So You Want To Be A Floater, Huh?

I was having a conversation a while back with a younger pharmacist who thought that the best answer to avoiding the soul-draining everyday political bullshit in the workplace, was to work for the pharmacy registries or the temporary staffing services. To each his own I guess.

I know that it sounds like a good gig. But unless you speak with a pharmacist who's experienced the good, the bad, and the ugly of working through a registry, you might be stepping into a hornet's nest. So, let me share just this ONE ugly aspect of that end of the business that's almost unavoidable.

In many of the pharmacies that you'll be assigned to work, you'll be viewed as the drifter, an outsider often considered inferior or even incompetent, and someone presumed incapable of doing the job as quickly and efficiently as the pharmacists and techs employed there full time.

And you'll be held in contempt until you stand your ground and prove it to the bullies otherwise.

So, knowing that you probably won't believe that, I've included this hidden video of my experience at the local pharmacy after-hours hangout, during an assignment at a pharmacy located near Tucson.

No Pharmacy Respect

I don't think the public understands what hospital pharmacists go through every day. So, I thought I'd post this older video that might give them a better understanding of the lack of pharmacy respect.

Young Pharmacists Rule

I've been around for a while, so I can understand what young chain-pharmacists go through on a daily basis - constantly getting knocked down by everyone - their customers, their co-workers, and even their supervisors. They get it from all ends. It's tough work, and it's a chore to deal with every day.

So, it's understandable that the only way they can deal with the daily stress is to get together with their colleagues after work, have some fun, throw back a few drinks, focus on the positive aspects of their job, piss the night away, and try to get motivated for the next day.

I don't know how long they'll last doing it, but you've got to admire their consistent youthful tenacity.

Profession-Al

Metal-fabricator Neil Youngberg never planned on taking over his grandfather's business and is now faced with passing on his legacy.

Although Profession-al is far removed from the topic of healthcare, I found the most interesting part of this story is that - almost every single thing this guy says, or has experienced in his life, also applies to the profession of pharmacy, especially the practice of independent pharmacy.


PROFESSIONal from VITA BREVIS FILMS on Vimeo.

Don't Sign That Contract

Because I was one myself, I understand the excitement that many newer pharmacists experience when first entering the world of pharmacy and healthcare.

You've worked hard to achieve your goals and sacrificed financially for many years. Now that you've accomplished your goals, you're extremely motivated to pursue your dreams and take advantage of the many opportunities that are presented to you. You can't wait to get started.

But be aware. For every motivated and altruistic new pharmacist that enters the profession, there are just as many unscrupulous individuals, greedy "colleagues", or corporate minions counting on your motivation in order to exploit you.

These unscrupulous individuals understand that high intelligence is no protection from stupid behavior, and will stop at nothing to use your naivety against you. As much as they may smile, congratulate you, slap you on the back and blow smoke up your ass, they are NOT your friends. To them, you're just fresh meat on the street.

Don't be fooled by promises or dollar signs, and sign something that you may regret later on. There's a reason why they want you to sign a secrecy-agreement, an employment contract, or some other document relinquishing your rights as a condition of employment. And it's not to protect you.

However, don't just take my word for it. See what Dr. Victor DeNoble has experienced.


Source: Addiction Incorporated

Pharmacists | What We Do

It's that time of the year again - this month begins a new school year.

Good luck to all you first-year pharmacy students. You've gotten what you asked for - acceptance into a school of pharmacy. Just remember though, for as long as it lasts, a career in pharmacy can be a terrible grind if you're only doing it for the money, or if you're doing it just to please someone else.

But, don't just take my word for it. Listen to what some more-experienced, and possibly burned-out, university professors may have to say about what we do. Maybe you'll be one of the lucky ones.

Southern Exposure

Listen up pharmacy students and recent grads. Here's some good advice for the near-term future.

Although I'm the poster child for being debt-free and for living below one's means, for many future pharmacists (including myself once), acquiring student loan debt is a vital necessity for attaining a college degree. Most of us couldn't get through school without it. So, I understand how worried you are about repaying your loan upon graduation. Most pharmacists are responsible people.

But, if you fall prey to those large sign-on bonuses offered by the chains to work in the rural areas of America, you just may regret your decision. I've been there myself, so I know.

But again, don't just take my word for it. See what little chop-chop has to say about it.


Southern Exposure from Tiny Hat Studio on Vimeo.

The Boss

Dream on. You only wish this could happen to you.


The Boss from Sam Mausner on Vimeo.

Lovely Monster

Have you noticed how hateful the workplace has become recently? Ever wonder why you often come home so angry, tired, and depressed after work that you continually lash out at your loved ones?

What do you think is causing it? Could it be that we've given in to the unreasonable demands and expectations of our corporate overlords so often that we've allowed our jobs to consume us and become part of who we are, and have unconsciously become angry about everything?

I've seen this condition affect many older, burnt out pharmacists and their relationships over the years. But in recent years, I've noticed it happening more frequently to even younger and younger pharmacy workers. Perhaps it's fear of retaliation, fear of the unknown, the herd mentality. Who really knows?

Personally, I think this terrible affliction could easily be prevented by exercising a little intestinal fortitude in the workplace. No job is worth having to endure living alone. Have the guts to say "NO!" before it starts to grow on you and ruins your life.


LOVELY MONSTER from Francesco Calabrese on Vimeo.

The Art Of Effective Negotiation

Seems to me that when independent pharmacists opened their doors to third-party reimbursements many years ago, that they just signed whatever contracts they were given, without reading them thoroughly and negotiating the finer details. Now, it's too late.

Had they just sat down with those corporate criminals, and learned the art of effective negotiations like our chain pharmacy brothers did back in the day, perhaps today we would be able to provide reimbursable individual pharmacist services, and not have to continually find and define our "role".


Overhead Clause from menoargenti on Vimeo.

Pharmacist Alcohol Use Statistics

I just came across this BBC report of alcohol use among pharmacists and think I may have found the reason why I've experienced such poor supervisory skills in the profession.


Hat tip: Fail Blog

Failure To Communicate

I've read a lot of blogs, Twitter posts, and other forums over the years where pharmacists discuss working conditions, and I've come away with the feeling that most pharmacists haven't encountered the same type of outrageous supervisor behaviors that I've experienced in my career. I find it hard to believe that these type of things only happen to me. But, I'll share them anyway.

I remember one time about ten years ago while practicing community pharmacy in a very rural area, when a drug rep came to the pharmacy unannounced to "tell" me that I'd better be dispensing the Brand drug that she represented, regardless of whether the doctor wrote that substitution was permissible and when the patient wanted generic.

This rep was angry and caught me off guard, so I just stood there and looked at her while collecting my thoughts. She then gave me a contemptuous look, threw her business card on the counter and said her company had an agreement with my employer that they would always dispense her Brand dug, and that I'd better be doing just that. Then she demanded that I give her the records of all patients who were prescribed her company's drug, but were substituted with the generic version.

I kid you not! Like they say, truth is often stranger than fiction.

Of course, I told her to take a hike, that I wasn't going to give her any patient records, or explain myself to her. Personally, I wasn't aware of any company policy about this, nor was I sure I would comply with it if there was one. Thereupon, the woman got even angrier and said, in a threatening tone, that she was going to talk to my supervisor about it, and stormed out.

Yes, if I remember correctly, it could have been a Monday.

Now I don't know about you, but over the course of my career I've only had just a few supervisors who knew how to effectively communicate with their staff. Like I've said before, it seems to me that most supervisors are trying to escape working the front lines, have little or no management training, and will do anything to avoid being a staff pharmacist again.

It would seem to me that whenever there's some sort of disagreement in the workplace, the most appropriate response from a supervisor would be to investigate both sides of the story in a cool, calm, and objective manner. But, for the life of me, most of the supervisors I've had usually have done just the opposite, choosing to believe what was said about me without investigating or asking my side of the story first. I can't ever remember a time when a supervisor said to me calmly - "Hey CP, I've just received a [insert complaint here] and wanted to hear what you have to say about it."

Pretty simple, huh?

Here I am trying to provide the best patient care I can, to get along with everyone, to be successful, and to make both my supervisors and my employer look good. You would think that my efforts would be rewarded with a little professional courtesy in return, but no. My supervisor in this instance came in and reemed me a new one in front of my techs without ever once asking me what happened.

The conversation went all downhill from there, and with it somehow being my fault.



Truthfully, I'm very easy to get along with and would prefer to get along with everyone else. But once you cross the line by abusing me, especially without provocation, there's no going back. And it's all because of a failure to communicate appropriately. Needless to say, my rose-colored glasses lost more of their tint after this incident and I gave a two-week notice to move on to my next adventure.

Nursing Versus Pharmacy

If you've been practicing what's left of your profession in the hospital setting for a while, then you've likely come to realize that nursing garners much of the decision-making power. They run the show from top to bottom. In my long itinerant career, I've even worked in a few hospitals where most of the hospital executives were former nurses. They don't forget where they came from and almost always strongly support the nurses in the trenches, sometimes at expense of other departments.

During that same period of time, you've probably also noticed that pharmacy has lost much of it's decision-making capabilities in the hospital setting. They don't have the same amount of power the used to have 15-20 years ago. As a matter of fact, I've even worked in a couple of for-profit hospitals where the pharmacy director has been replaced with a non-pharmacist.

That's right. Just like chain pharmacies and the PBMs, pharmacists working in hospitals often have to answer to non-pharmacist supervisors. As crazy as it may sound, in my career, I've had to answer to pharmacy technicians, radiology technicians, and even business majors who were put in charge of the pharmacy departments (directly and indirectly).

So, any pharmacists left running the pharmacy departments in hospitals sometimes have to resort to using rhetoric, flattery, ass-kissing, or some other type of bullshit rap to get what they want. If they're up against a nursing department who wants something differently, chances are they're going to lose.

But, don't just take my word for it.

I just happened to find video of our hospital's pharmacy and nursing directors arguing over the use of technology in reducing personnel costs, and showing who's really got the power. Just notice who's smiling, dancing, and sarcastically telling the frustrated pharmacist "Yeah, you're breaking my heart".

Community Pharmacists' Psyche

After dropping off a bit over the past month or so, it now seems to me that pharmacy robberies are back on the increase again. Some pharmacies have even reported being robbed twice in just one day!

And what are the corporate powers doing to protect their employees? Not too much that I've noticed. Except telling them the same thing they've been telling them for years about every other liability that's been shifted onto their backs - comply and "hope" for the best outcome.

I'm not sure just how long pharmacists can keep working without it starting to affect their psyche. I mean, who knows who's next on the list for some psycho killer coming through the door?

As a matter of fact, I recently overheard one pharmacist discussing her concerns with management in the break room. Seems like she's fed up and about to take matters into her own hands. She's so touchy now that she's having a hard time dealing with "all" customers. And who can blame her?

Shit People Say To Their Pharmacist

I think the title speaks for itself. Is this what's considered providing MTM services?


Hat tip: Ashley Jones