Dear Public, the pharmacy world is on fire right now and you might wonder why.
You see, for more than a decade, working conditions at your local CVS Health ,Walgreens , RITEAID PHARMACY and others have been unsafe. But with COVID, what was once a house on fire , became an entire neighborhood or even city on fire! Community Chain Pharmacists, Technicians and Pharmacy Students were tasked with the great honor to vaccinate the entire country. We took, this call with pride, because we were and are still are the very heart of public health and what we do for the public at large, can NOT be explained in one post !
We are the most accessible individuals. We are often the first person you see before headed to your doctor. And the last person . While everything was shutting down, we were present. We held you in the moments of the lonely quarantine. We celebrated with you. We mourned with you . And we did all of that while still expected to continue to fill prescriptions, meet company profits driven goals among other things.
And yet, our burdens were not matched with the proper physical, emotional and even financial support. But we did it. We burned ourselves to the ground because we chose this profession. Meanwhile, companies like those big corporations, pocketed the revenues and made no attempt to meet simple requests such as less demands on us, better staffing, patients centered values or even better pay for our technicians who were and are still very much underpaid.
We have come to work with fear in our hearts because every prescription we touched, felt like an error! We became sick, physically and emotionally. Some turned to substances and other things just to make it through. We became the pilot with no flight attendants and yet still being asked to handle bags, drinks and snacks while flying the plane .
And today, it is still happening. This is very much alive in your Walgreens, CVS and others.
Now do you understand why we are on fire? We do not feel safe for you! The very people we took an oath to protect… your life is being endangered by those corporations and they do not care about you and us.
So no, we are not asking for more money like they say in the news. There is not a shortage of us. They are lying so much, it is like breathing air for them.
What we want is safety for you! What we want is to take care of you. What we want is to know your name and take time to know you.For them, you are just a prescription number. To us, you are so much more!!
We don’t want to pass snacks and drinks.
We want to fly you to safety!
We have always seen you.
But now, do you see us? Do you see why many are walking out in protest? Do you see why they are putting their reputation And livehood on the line ?
Patient Safety should be the number goal of any healthcare system. It is ours as Pharmacists, Technicians and Pharmacy Students. We strive for it! But to them, those giants… it is NOT!
Disclaimer: those thoughts are my own.
Right now, Pharmacy, Pharmacists & Pharmacy technicians are in a crisis. This did not happen over night, but the COVID-19 pandemic did accelerate a crisis that was already building.
What man-hours were added to a Rx dept during the COVID-19 vaccines and testing… as soon as the demand for COVID-19 vaccines, it was just as as Flu vaccines “season” was just starting and most/all the chains cut back on the man-hours in the various Rx depts. This was seemingly the “straw” and I know many chain pharmacies around us, were experiencing Rx dept staff – calling in sick and/or just “giving notice”
Here is a recent blog post, that maybe the direct/indirect outcome of the under staffed, over worked Rx depts. https://www.pharmaciststeve.com/it-is-claimed-that-third-largest-cause-of-all-premature-deaths-is-from-medical-errors/
I suggest you read the above post and pay particular attention to the response of the attorney representing CVS, questioning why the chain was being fined $10,000. They apparently accept no responsibility of the BAD OUTCOME(S) of under staffing.
Filed under: General Problems
Oligarchy plain and simple ….. Everyman taking a bribe
There is no disincentive to stop ruining employees lives while on the job in addition, also nothing from putting pharmacists in precarious positions to risk a mortal error. All these Boards of Pharmacies and other political agencies do is to give a monetary slap, if anything. Notice that no one is ever held responsible in politics, media or with the 3 letter organizations in our country including the Board of Pharmacy. We take ALL the responsibility for our actions and those above the law want to prosecute anyone they can outside their privileged Club. The only thing we can do is tell patients that these employers are risking their lives and our careers. It’s quite disgusting how detrimental politicians have become to a quality of life we are all losing here in US and throughout most of the world. Remember what happened in the movie Network, where citizens couldn’t take it anymore. It’s coming close to that moment in time!
This is a “old article” but I doubt if the ratios have changed much – maybe even gotten worse over the years Chains’ ties run deep on pharmacy boards