AUGUST ,Edition # 32 , 2001

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I am trying not to preach, but I am telling it as I see it, and ALSO trying to offer solutions.
I have now worked in 15 different pharmacies, since selling my own pharmacy nine months ago.
There are two only, that I will not work in again (these guys know why!).
The fact that I am booked until Feb 2002, worries me …. me, personally, because I am working an average of 50 hours per week, and I am supposed to be getting a life(!), AND I worry about the future of the profession, because of that chronic shortage of locums.
I tell pharmacists that I am a convicted paedophile, my wife has an AVO against me, and I will dip the till, but they STILL say:
"Come on down, Big Boy!"
It seems to me that there are an increasing number of Pharmacies which are running full time on relievers.
Also, pharmacists are having their week's holiday using two or three different relievers.
Nobody would deny that there is a chronic shortage of pharmacists (worldwide), and it is not going to get better, because it is a lousy job!
What right minded person with a TER/UAI of 96 would go into a locked-in, stressful job like this?
Very few customers know what we have to do, and will not give us time to do it. We pharmacists are not helping the situation, because we are increasingly prepared to drop our standards just to keep the patient, while at the same time, our leaders are pushing us as medication experts, just waiting to take our rightful place in the health team.
I do hope we can ALL live up to expectation.
Negative comments are not allowed - it is time to just DO IT!
I am probably just as guilty, because I sometimes go into a pharmacy with crappy systems, and I should say:
"Look girls, I cannot work like this … here's what we are going to do".
What happens then, is that they cannot cope with change, and the stress levels for EVERYONE goes up - not just me - they hate me for it, and I will soon have no work!
So I say, "Oh well … it is only a week…!"
The owner pharmacist allows himself to be dictated to by the patient, because they might go somewhere else, and he will go broke.
He and I basically have the same problem in his pharmacy.
I know you will say that it's easy for me to say things like that, but I did set the rules in my own Pharmacy, and I don't think (?) I went broke.
* I did not do deliveries ("I'm sorry, I don't have anyone to do that").
* I did very few owing scripts ("the surgery is just along the verandah" - the docs preferred that also).
* I was happy to keep their scripts on file, as long as they understood that I would not be responsible if they had not acted on the "last repeat thing".
* I gave them little printed cards with the appropriate message on it, to keep them in line.
It worked!
I made they rules - they all knew the rules - they were responsible for their own health, and I copped almost no abuse.
Be stronger - people will respect you for it, if you do it right.
I might suggest a solution to the shortage of pharmacists - especially locum pharmacists.
The Guild could offer to broker local arrangements to bring back the roster arrangements.
Yes it COULD work again!
Both you, and your opposition would have a shot at each other's patients.
Your salaries would reduce, your quality of life would improve, your relieving pharmacist problem would improve, and there might be up to 50% more pharmacists around for your weeks off.
The Guild (or some other body) would have to sponsor it.
OK, there would be some minor problems to work through, but you have to admit that it could work.
Shopping centre lease conditions might be a problem, but if the profession was seriously united, it could work.
May I finish with a developing trend in community pharmacy which must be addressed?
I work in far too many pharmacies where the patients are encouraged to wait … like REALLY wait … leaning on the counter, drumming impatient fingers, and refusing to move.
That makes our whole job much more stressful, and it is almost impossible to counsel either that patient, or anyone else, when he/she is blocking access to you.
There are a significant number of pharmacies who encourage this kind of behaviour - in fact, one even claims that this is his point of difference.
After reading the Board (NSW) bulletin, I am sure I am not professionally negligent or criminal.
However, some of the dispensing errors send shivers down my spine…!
The impatient waiting unreasonable patient, who is allowed and encouraged to behave that way, makes dispensing errors inevitable.
Why not let that patient to go to the opposition - let HIM get de-registered!

All right, lighten up with a joke for the week:

A woman and a man are involved in a car accident; it's a bad one.
Both of their cars are totally demolished but amazingly neither of them are hurt. After they crawl out of their cars, the woman says,
"So you're a man; that's interesting. I'm a woman. Wow, just look at our cars! There's nothing left,but fortunately we are unhurt. This must be a sign from God that we should meet and be friends and live together in peace for the rest of our days."
Flattered, the man replied,
"Oh yes, I agree with you completely!" "This must be a sign from God!" The woman continued,
"And look at this, here's another miracle. My car is completely demolished but this bottle of wine didn't break. Surely God wants us to drink this wine and celebrate our good fortune."
Then she hands the bottle to the man. The man nods his head in agreement,opens it and drinks half the bottle and then hands it back to the woman. The woman takes the bottle, immediately puts the cap back on, and hands it back to the man.
The man asks, "Aren't you having any?"
The woman replies, "No. I think I'll just wait for the police..."

Ends
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Editor's Note:
With a unique brand of humour, a capacity for expecting the unexpected and a high degree of professionalism, it is obvious that Roy is providing a first class service as a locum.
I am sure there are a number of prospective employers who would like to meet him. He now has a website located at:

http://www.computachem.com.au/locums/RoyStevenson.html

You can arrange more information, and a locum booking, from this site.

Roy S.Stevenson Ph.C. M.P.S.,
Locum Pharmacist
40 Northminster Way
RATHMINES 2283.
Tel 4975 5548 Mob. 0402 406 691 Fax 0249 75 2334
ABN 11 585 465 385

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