Hey Mr. or Mrs. pharmacist, I'm not a junkie so quit treating me like one.

Is anybody else here sick and tired of pharmacists seeming to assume that everyone who takes a pain med is an addict just looking for a fix?

I'm sure I am not the only person who has experienced this. I'll call a prescription in a couple of days before I'm going to be out, requesting that it be filled the next day (actually, I request my refills over the computer  since I have an online account with Walgreens), and when I go to pick it up I get a comment from the pharmacist something along the lines of, "We filled it, but you shouldn't have been out yet". I feel like replying, "Uh, no maam, I am not completely out yet. Please forgive me for not waiting until the bottle was empty and then showing up at your store expecting it to be filled in fifteen minutes".

I know they can't refill pain medications more that a couple of days before you should be out, and I don't ask them to. But for the love of common sense, why do they need to make smart remarks if I try to get my medications...and only one of them is a controlled substance...just one day before I don't have any left?

Post Edited (newname) : 8/7/2011 3:05:29 PM (GMT-6)

I hear ya Newname that is another wonderful thing that happens to us peeps that battle CP. I really try not to let it get to me, because those idiots are just not worth the aggravation. One thing I have learned about CP is if you want to survive it in todays world, you better be able to get a little thicker skinned when dealing with drs and pharmacist or anyone else that happens to cross our path. Granted that is not a solution to this situation. I will not use Walgreens or CVS because of the attitude of their employees. I have for many years used the pharmacy in my grocery store and I get no grief at all about any of my scripts from them, but I did at the other places.

You need to keep in mind just because that pharmacist made it through a very hard school to become one he may have book sense only and no common sense. When that happens you end up with someone that is a complete moron and an idiot. Try not to let them get to ya, they just are not worth your time.

If I may continue to play devil's advocate, since I have been on that kick lately.

CP patients need to be careful about how they (we) view the world around us. Because we do experience the prejudice in all its forms it is easy to become jaded and start seeing what is not there. In doing this we are no better than the doctor, nurse, pharmacist or pharmacy employee who has dealt often with the drug seekers/abusers often enough that they start seeing them everywhere. It is a human response, though it most certainly does not make it right.

One thing I want to point out that the issue brought up about getting bad service at a pharmacy is an individual pharmacy thing and is not a chain wide problem. I say this because there have been 2 people who have had bad experiences at their local Walgreens. I use Walgreens myself and have never experienced any of this from my local store. I have experienced though at other pharmacies in town including a "mom and pop" one.

I wasn't directing my comments towards you or trying to indicate that what you have experienced is anything but genuine. It was just a general comment on things.

@Jim. I wasn't trying to be a jerk to you, bro. Sorry if it came off that way. What you are saying is true. Kind of like the old saying, "Once bitten, twice shy". If you've had pharmacists in the past basically accuse you of abusing a medication, it's easy to get paranoid about it. So I totally understood what you were getting at.

@Straydog, yeah, I reported this little snot. I hate calling people names because it is somewhat immature, but sometimes it's also justified. Hopefully they actually chewed her out and she'll think harder before making anymore uncalled for and unjustifed remarks. If it backfires and she tries to get me in trouble with my doctor, she won't have a leg to stand on and I'll make her regret it. If she had to wake up every morning feeling like someone had taken a sledgehammer to her back, maybe then she'd understand. Besides, I use tramadol. Yes, it can be addictive and I'm told has the potential to get someone a "high", but only if you take a handfull at a time, which I'm not stupid enough to do.
When I was first told that tramadol could have that effect, I thought I was being bull****ed, but apparently it's true. I've never gotten even slightly buzzed from taking it, but that's because I actually care about my health and have no desire to jeopardize it.

I may have been told wrong on this, but I had a pharmacist tell me that it was a violation of Federal DEA regulations/law for a pharmacy to do a partial fill on a medication and then to refuse to fill the remainder of the script once the meds are back in stock.

The reason I was told this is that one time I had a partial script fill at a pharmacy for a narcotic pain med and when I went back in they told me that they could not give me the rest because it was a narcotic and I had accepted a partial fill on it. This was before I became a CP patient and I was given the meds for post op pain control. I was nearly healed and was able to make it the last 5 days (which was the amount that didn't get filled) so I just let it drop.

A few years later, after becoming a CP, I was faced with the same thing at a different pharmacy and was about to refuse the partial fill which was when I was told that it was actually illegal per federal law.

If you have the time and the ability I suggest talking with a few pharmacists in your area and ask them about this and/or talk to your doctor about it. If you find out this is true you then might want to contact upper management at that pharmacy or even the police. At best it would then be a case of someone not knowing what they are doing, at worst it could be a case of drug theft.

@requiem.

Yes, pharmacists and doctors need to be vigilant about making sure people are not abusing prescirptions. But I don't see how snide remarks from a pharmacist are ever neccessary. If they have a reason to believe someone is taking more of a medication than they should be, the solution is to call their doctor. Besides, my pharmacists got snotty with me simply because I got a prescription filled one day before I would have been out of it. How was my doing that an indication of abuse? If anything, it shows I have common sense and it certainly didn't require a snippy remark. I mean, one day? It's legal to get even controlled substances TWO days before you'll be out, so what problem was there by my getting tramadol (which isn't yet a controlled substance in most states but apparently soon will be) just one day before I would have been out of it? And believe me, I'm not the only person in town who has experienced that kind of stupidity. Not just at my current pharmacy, either. It seems to be a general attitude of most pharmacists around here.

Bottom line, if a pharmacist has a legitimate reason to suspect that someone is abusing a prescription, they can refuse to fill it and call the persons doctors about their concerns. But smart a** remarks aren't neccessary, especially when a person has done nothing wrong.

Post Edited (newname) : 7/31/2011 8:11:25 AM (GMT-6)

Jim I think I am repeating myself here but my pharmacist is willing to call my PM dr and let her know she did not have enough for a complete refill. I can then pick up a script from the PM to get the remainder of the script, or I can go across the street to another pharmacy if they have the medication. My pharmacist always gives me that option and will call over there and ask if they have enough to fill the entire script.

I have to comment on this topic as well. Sometimes my Pharmacy (I use a local grocery store pharmacy) has not enough to fill my Kadian for a full month supply. Now, I was told that they have to be able to fill it within 72 hours. If they can't then they call my PM and tell them that I need a new script. They have always been good at doing this. But I as a patient will always call the pharmacy to make sure they have enough to fill the script. I usually call them a few days in advance so that I am not caught off guard and in a situation where I cannot get my meds. Wal-mart here does not carry Kadian and the other smaller pharmacy does not either. So I am at the mercy of my own Pharmacy with refills.

I just got a new script for my Kadian and forgot to call in advance to see if they had enough to fill. So.....lets see if they have enough to fill this month. And....they do have my Kadian and my oxi so I can fill them today.

Our local chain pharamcy is always "out" of 1 or more of my meds when its my date to fill, even though I would try and fill the same thing every month there was always a problem. They only order narcotics once per week so at times this leaves you really in a jam, unless you want to get permission to fill elsewhere and drive 30 minutes to a different pharmacy. I am happy I am now with a little local Mom and Pop pharmacy. They order narcotics every business day, so even if they are out one day they will have it in their hands the next. Of course they are at the mercy of their supplier, but since I switched there I havent had an issue. They are the only pharamacy that can order one of my meds too. They accept all of my scripts via fax too, of course I need to bring the hard copy to them when I pick up, but that helps tremendously when I am having a really rough day. I sure hope this place can stay open!

Hi. I am new to this forum. I wanted to post to tell you that my DH tried to turn in a prescription at Walgreens one day early, sayin he would pick it up the next day day, the day it was due and they wouldn't even let him turn it in. They it had to be turned in the day it due for a refill. We live 40 mi. from town so it's not exactly a hop skip and a jump thing. Maybe we should talk to someone about this? Won't it make it more unpleasant dealing with these folks in the future?

I have Fibro - bad and don't get around much anymore. Poor DH having to put up with that. :(

Yes, I was addicted to the meds because I needed them for real pain. They never made me feel high or anything, and I would rather not have had to take them.

Wanna hear a funny but not so funny story?

When I was on a high dose Vicodin (60mg daily) for pain I called my doctor for a refill and they said that I had missed more than 2 appointments in a 90 day period and she was no longer my doctor and could not give me a refill. I was like, oh you have GOT to be XXXXXXXXXX kidding me! She was the one that convinced me to start taking it!
Anyways, after 24 hours or so I started to go through massive withdrawals. I called this thing called "ask a nurse?" (idk if any other hospitals have something like this but it's basically just for medical advice) I explained all my symptoms to her and asked her if there was anything I could do to ease the symptoms. She kept asking me if the symptoms were bad enough that I would want to hurt myself or something and I kept telling her no. She insisted that I come to the hospital for some methadone but I declined. about ten minutes later I hear some pounding at the door and I look out and there are 3 county cop cars, a fire truck, and an ambulance in my driveway with their lights on!!!!
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
I opened the door and was like, "Yyyess? Can I help you?"
They said that the ask a nurse had told 911 that I was probably going to kill myself!!
Oh for cryin out loud!!!!
After mmmmuch persuading, they finally left!

So to summ up, NO! I don't think anyone that doesn't take meds for chronic pain understands anything about that situation at all.





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Post Edited By Moderator (Screaming Eagle) : 8/9/2011 4:49:46 PM (GMT-6)

@ newname

tyvm for that info
dealing with petty bureaucratic control freaks is a drag.
seems like anyone who a just a little power will wield it to our detriment these days. (: