High School Students Filling Prescriptions

THE SAME SITUATION AT CVS. COMPANY WOULD MUCH RATHER PAY MIN. WAGE THAN PAY FOR EXP.

My husband received a prescription where the directions were to take “vaginally.” The pharmicist was from an Asian country and could not understand or speak enough English to comprehend when he was questioned. Needless to say we don’t use that pharmacy or that entire chain anymore!

Before you roast this young lady for this where was the pharmacist who was suppose to over see this prescription? It was his job to double check that it was correct.

For Walgreens to say ‘we regret the few errors. . .’ is adding insult to injury.
I would be so insulted by this remark if I had lost a loved one.
We don’t this minimized; we need it STOPPED! IMMEDIATELY!

I would just like to say that within this article it is stated, “Walgreens is the country’s biggest pharmacy and recently reported record profits.” Walgreens is not the largest pharmacy chain. The largest pharmacy chain is CVS/Pharmacy

When I was in college the tendency was to hire students away from Pharmacy programs before they graduated. Now they haven’t even finished high school? I am appalled.

I just have a few things to say. My son is a pharmacy tech. He works two jobs. One at Pacific Care in Oceanside and the other at CVS in Vista. The job he does in Oceanside is working with Doctor’s and there staff over the phone in the injectable department. To my understanding this position is very professal, stressfull at times but he does not deal with the public. The job at CVS he says is joke. The staff and the pharmacist are not professionl at all. They also let the employee’s from different department’s help when they get busy. My son did not go to pharmacy school. He graduated with honors from high scholl. From there he got a book and studyed for 3 or 4 months. Went and took he’s pharmacy tech test, passed with flying colors. My point is, retail pharmacy’s are a joke. I would never have any of my prescriptions filled at any of the retail pharmacy’s. When I do have a RX filled I do go to Costco.

It’s crazy to put this kind of responsibility on anyone who is not properly trained! It doesn’t matter if it is a 16 year old high school student or a 40 year old mom, anyone doing this job should be trained. And if they don’t have time to train them correctly, have a pharamicist check EVERY prescription filled – no exceptions! I use Walgreens as my pharmacy, mainly because it is the only convenient one where I live. I will be verifying that a pharmacist has checked my prescriptions from now on! Thank you for informing the public to this dangerous situation.

Like this should come as a big surprise to anyone?? In this day & age the bottom line is all that matters. People don’t count.
So what if a few people drop dead from mis filled prescriptions. Paying off a few lawsuits is just part of the cost of doing business and will still be cheaper the hiring qualified Pharmacists.

I am speechless. A 16 year old can’t even serve beer, wine, liquor in a restaurant, so why the HELL is a 16 year old dispensing meds. The stores that allow this should be boycotted.

Isn’t it interesting that this same girl would not be allowed by law to scan your beer or achohol through the register scanner and place it in the bag for you without the assistance of an adult (18 yrs)running the product accross the scanning belt for her at the grocery store but she can fill your prescription at the pharmacy with out limitations?

There is a right way and a wrong way to do everything. It is the patients responsibility to know their copays and coverages. Insurance companies notify plan members, either through group plans provided by the employer or the group administrator and individually through plan publications and mailings of coverages and changes. I’ve had group plan coverage for over 20 years and I have always received policy coverage and change information promptly. Don’t blame the insurance companies for dumb and impatient customers.
If your wait times vary, or tend to be long, put a sign out that informs the customers when they approach the counter what their expected wait time will be. If they don’t like it, they can go elsewhere. Each and every customer deserves accurate and exacting service. If that takes time, then it takes time.
The fact is that the patients deserve zero errors on their prescriptions. Zero, not 1 in 1,000,000. If you don’t have enough properly trained and qualified staff, then don’t fill the prescription. It is as simple as that. If you take money for providing a service and that service kills or sickens someone because you made a mistake, the only one to blame is yourself.

Some of the above posts seem to require clarification. For one, mistakes in pharmacy can (and do) happen in EVERY pharmacy in the world. The only way to truly eliminate these errors would be to remove the drugs. Also, there are many pharmacy techs who are very well trained (some with college degrees). In response to one post, the VAST majority of pharmacists worked as pharmacy techs prior to pharmacy school. Also, pharmacy licences are not granted without many hours of work in pharmacy practice. Unless individuals begin to take a more proactive role in their own health care, it would be impossible to see dramatic change. If you want to criticize pharmacists, nurses, doctors, etc. you sould at least know what medicine you are talking about (as opposed to saying “for a foot fungus”).

As a certified pharmacy technician, I found this very disturbing. I’ve worked in 2 different pharmacies, one small and family owned, the other a larger chain and the pharmacist is always the last one to check the prescription. I think anyone who works as a pharmacy tech should have the proper training and certification. I received my certification only after I passed a test for each part of my training. I enjoy being a pharmacy tech and articles like this give the the good ones a bad name.

The FDA should be involved in how prescriptions are filled in the U.S. and by all means a high school student should not be given the responsibilty of such an important job..

The biggest thing missing from this story is this: There is a huge shortage of pharmacists in the country. In a time where people are living longer, and a pharmacy is opening up on every corner, there is simply not enough staff to cover all of these stores. I used to work at a major pharmacy chain in Minneapolis. The staff shortage got so bad, that we had to fly pharmacists in from other parts of the country (all at overtime, and huge cost) to help staff the stores, and in some cases, close some pharmacies early, or open late, due to a lack of pharmacist. With the pool or experienced registered pharmacists spread so thin, these stores have no choice but to have pharmacy techs do more and more work. And errors unfortunately will happen.

I had a recent experience liek this. Except, the pharmacy technician at Rite-Aid clicked all my buttons in those electronic boxes. So, I never even had a chance to ask the pharmacist questions about my drugs! I will never be returning to Rite-Aid. Target has been very good about the pharmacist checking me out and telling me what I need to know!

The picture of the young girl, who entered the prescription information incorrectly, is misrepresenting the truth behind the story. By displaying her picture, the individual coordinating the information is placing the blame on the young girl. She is a technician, who operated under the license of a pharmacist. The pharmacist is responsible for the error. The real story behind this horrible accident is that the pharmacist failed to check to be certain the technician did in fact enter the information correctly. In addition, the pharmacist should have visited with the customer to discuss the medication. Ten times the dosage of Coumadin is excessive and should have been caught.
Do not jump to conclusions again. We need to know why the pharmacist did not catch the error. Not enough other licensed pharmacists to cover the prescription load? Inadequate technology? There are several reasons, and within these reasons is an answer that hides as details but holds all the strength of truth.

As a former Walgreens employee I myself was called many times to the pharmacy to assist at the counter for pickups. I never counted pills or saw customer info.

Did you know when u have a perscription filled the company isn’t responsible for in incorrect filling. My daughter was given the wrong meds and suffered a Grand Mal seizure. Not only was she hospitalized she also suffered long term affects. Who is responsible…Rite Aid said they aren’t….the pharmacists aren’t…so who is? My daughter is now 24 years old an has a handicap that is long term.

No one has considered the possiblity of illegible handwriting. Coumadin 1mg scribled fast can easily look like Coumadin 10mg. Both are resonable doses.

It does not take a college degree to count out pills and stick a label on a bottle. Mistakes are made by everyone. You cannot train a person to not make mistakes. And as far as getting the wrong perscription, shouldn’t the consumer know what perscription they are getting? If they are not observant enough to look at the label and make sure everything is right, then they shouldn’t be trusted to administer medication to themselves. Has anyone ever thought that the mistake could have been made by the doctor perscribing the wrong drug?

Where was the pharmacist when the technician made the typing mistake? In
Walgreen’s computer system the pharmacist checks the prescription for typing errors and then prints the prescription label. Then the technicians fill the prescription, and the pharmacist is supposed to check for typing and mis-filling errors AGAIN. I do not see why a technician is being held responsible. It is the pharmacist fault for not paying attention!!! I can almost guarantee the pharmacist only had a bachelor in that pharmacy and not the new doctorate of pharmacy degree. I think it should be mandatory for every pharmacist to go back to school to get their doctorate. I believe it would cut down the errors. The University of Florida has four campuses in Florida offering classes for pharmacist to update their degree.

Interesting how people will post about the big pharmacy chains operating only for money, but don’t mention that the media is making money by their ratings. Is causing a panic really doing anyone any good? The story is way out of context and unfortunately more people will potentially be harmed by it should they stop taking their medications. I agree there should be zero errors…absolutely. The fact is, there are errors in every profession including the healthcare industry. For years pharmacy technicians have operated under pharmacists, this is nothing new. I’ve been a pharmacy technician for years, been yelled at by customer’s that they’ve waited “seven minutes already”, cussed out for an insurance issue that had nothing to do with the pharmacy itself. You want to make a diffeence in your healthcare?? Start contacting the insurance companies about the rising costs of medications…that is the bottom line. Are the lawyers for these individuals doing this pro bono?

FDA should be taking care of business on this one.I have been telling people about this for years. I have had the wrong prescription given to me.You should also count your pills. They have been wrong in the amount of these too. I know it is hard to count before you walk away from the counter but it needs to be done. I think that they are hoping you don’t count them. This helps save drug stores money. They get 1 pill from every customer… in a day this would add up. Rite Aid and other big chains would rather pay min wage. I also blame this on the FDA. They should make sure that you need a college education in order to fill a prescription. This could be a matter of life or death!

FDA should be taking care of business on this one.I have been telling people about this for years. I have had the wrong prescription given to me.You should also count your pills. They have been wrong in the amount of these too. I know it is hard to count before you walk away from the counter but it needs to be done. I think that they are hoping you don’t count them. This helps save drug stores money. They get 1 pill from every customer… in a day this would add up. Rite Aid and other big chains would rather pay min wage. I also blame this on the FDA. They should make sure that you need a college education in order to fill a prescription. This could be a matter of life or death!

I am a licensed & certified pharmacy technician in California, and have worked in many areas of the pharmacy world. What I have seen in the retail pharmacy setting is there is a lack of “patient-care” on the corporate side.
Pharmacists and technicians are working horrible, long hours, all with minimal help. There are budget cuts in the pharmacy left and right, all to the expense of the patients. (I say “patients” because these people are seeking medical service from the pharmacy. Corporate sees them as “paying customers”, just another dollar in the company’s pockets.)
In poor work conditions, there is no way one can be error-free. Us technicians and pharmacists strive for the best service for our patients. And when we aren’t given the help needed to do these things, the patients end up paying the price.
Also, to the patient’s benefit, several pharmacies include medication information on the handouts along with their prescription bottle. These also include a picture of the drug along with imprint information.
I am curious about the story tonight, and will be watching. But from the sound of this article, it seems a bit one-sided. Please know that this does NOT happen all the time, and that the majority of pharmacy technicians are WELL TRAINED PROFESSIONALS. We take pride in our line of work. Hopefully the story tonight will shed light on that.

Actually, pharmacy students are required to work as technicians. In the state I am currently enrolled in you must work 500 hours on your own and then complete 1000 hours during your final year. I would also like folks to bear in mind that pharmacy technicians ARE NOT pharmacists and did not go through the minimum 6 years of a PharmD program to become a pharmacist. Yes, technicians are not required to have much training, but bring that up. Also, kudos to Anthony for stating the truth about how it is to work in a retail pharmacy as a pharmacist. You should all read his comment and stop and think the next time you want to yell or argue with the pharmacy about things they do not control (i.e. YOUR insurance, YOUR doctor, etc.).

This investigation discusses patients signing away their right to counseling. National pharmacy associations and state boards of pharmacy are making efforts to have more counseling done by pharmacists. This is a huge shift in practice since 50 years ago it was illegal for pharmacists to discuss a patient’s medication with them. Laws are in place in many states that require pharmacists to counsel or offer counseling to patients.
The reason why pharmacists do not actually counsel on all prescriptions is because there is no reimbursement for a pharmacist’s counseling services. Along with this, cuts in prescription reimbursement by both government and private insurance companies necessitate that pharmacists increase the volume of prescriptions sold to stay in business. The expectations of pharmacists by employers, government officials, and patients are unrealistic. If patients want to get their prescriptions for the cheapest price, then they are going to have to sacrifice quantity for quality.
If patients want effective counseling services from pharmacists, then they will have to be willing to spend some money for them. Students graduating from colleges with degrees in pharmacy must have a Doctorate of Pharmacology to become licensed. (In the past pharmacists only needed a Bachelor’s degree). Medical doctors have much less training in pharmacology than pharmacists. Pharmacists are the medication experts. Patients would not expect to receive advice from a doctor with paying for it, and this same attitude should be applied to pharmacists.
-Holly, Student Pharmacist

ABC,
One solution that the State of Maryland has created is a law that requires that a Pharmacy Technician have national certification before they are allowed to work in a pharmacy that is licensed to dispense medication in the State and/or for Maryland residents. How strictly will the law be enforced? We shall see!

It all comes down to these money hungry corporations staffing with the absolute minimum amount of employees to save a few bucks. This problem needs to be adressed with updated labor laws requiring breaks for adults. In my state (michigan) only minors are guaranteed a lunch break. How exactly is someone supposed to perform their job with 8 or more hours on their feet WITHOUT FOOD?? Between that and the extreme impatience of society to have to wait for anything and you have a disaster waiting to happen.

its sad that the big pharmacy chains rely on inexperienced techs to run the pharmacy…Is it because they have to dish out less pay versus highering an experienced person and poying them more money?

Mistakes happen. This girl shouldn’t be blamed for a typo. The pharmacist should have caught the error but just because the error happened in that store doesn’t mean that pharmacist was at fault. Walgreens has a satellite system that allows other pharmacists to check prescriptions to help out busier stores. All prescriptions are checked by a pharmacist but can anyone honestly say, they’ve never had a typo. Can anyone in the news business say they’ve never had an editing mistake go to print. It happens, we aren’t God. You try to minimize errors and the likely hood of errors happening. You think pharmacists need to count out each pill?? where will you get these people. Pharmacy is a long and difficult study. It’s like doing away with nurses and making doctors collect vital signs. There is a pharmacist shortage and with the baby boomer’s getting older there will only be a greater need for more pharmacists in this country.

I was a pharmacy technician for almost 4 years in west virgina and cared deeply about my patients. I always gave them advice on taking their med’s. One woman even rewarded my stellar pharmacy tech skills by making me a hairline salad and bringing it to me for lunch. Oh how I miss the days of pharmcy life.

I have been a licensed pharmacy technician for 20 years. In order to receive my license, I had complete a year of study at a local college, followed by hands on training during my internship at a local hospital. In order to be come a licensed Pharmacist, one needs to complete a doctorate level degree followed by 1-3 years of internships. To state that a lack of training of pharmacy workers is solely responsible for mistakes is short sighted. Training is not the issue, a shortage of pharmacists, decreasing levels of reimbursement from insurance companies, an aging population, and increased cost of medications have lowered the profit margin for pharmacies. As a result, you are having an increasing workload placed on fewer people; people who often work overtime and with no breaks in order to make sure that the work gets done. It is crucial for the public to be active participents in their own healthcare. You need to know the name, dose and frequency of the medication that you are taking and what your are taking it for. You should also ask as many questions as you need to in order to make sure that you fully understand what you need to know regarding your medications. I would also like to point out that, by law, all work of technicians must be checked by a pharmacist and all patients must be offered counceling on the use of their medications by a pharmacist.

This article is a disturbing one. A young girl, the person that was given the wrong medication, and the families of both, lives have all been tragically affected. My son was once given a medication that was double the dosage that it was supposed to be, it was my son that actually noticed the error, most likely because the pill was a different color than the one he was use to taking, of course I immediatly called the pharmacy (which was not a Wal Greens) the Pharmacist was very apologetic I returned the wrong medicene and got the correct one. I learned from that incedent. I now ask questions about all medications that I am prescribed, and I check the bottle to make sure it is what was I am supposed to be getting.
I have never had a pharmacist who is not willing to answer any and all question I may have. I know that there are unfriendly or unsociable pharmacists, but doesn’t that apply to almost every profession?We are now living in a time period where we are all in a hurry, we don’t take the time or effort to make sure that we are getting what we are supposed to get. Why does it seem we are so quickly to blame a whole chain of stores for a human error, by a person who had almost no training? What is the purpose of having a Pharmacist to begin with if it is a untrained person, of any age, that is doing the work?
I could go on forever about this matter instead I am going to end in saying I think that if you are going to handle anything to do with a persons life, you should have the proper credentials, and the ones who are responsible for it to be correct should be the ones punished!! We all need to remember that we are humans, and we do make errors!

I have sat here and read all the comments and decided I have to say something. I am a pharmacist and realize that 1 mistake is 1 too many. There is never any intention to misfill a prescription. I take that very seriously and try my best to prevent that from happening. I work at a retail chain but that doesn’t take away from what I try to do everyday, which is to provide excellent service to my patients. Too many times we have to take complete responsibility for the patient’s medication. What I am referring to, for example, is when a patient is out of refills. We will tell the patient and many times get the response of “Well I’m out and you HAVE to call the doctor” We don’t have to call but we do as a courtesy.
When the insurance doesn’t cover a medication, many times we call the doctor to get a new prescription for something that is covered or less expensive. Many patients do not give us the correct insurance information until after we’ve been yelled at about the copay being too high. Why should it be so hard to accept the 10 to 15 minute wait to ensure that I have time to properly check your prescription. Many customers transfer their prescriptions back and forth between pharmacies which also takes time and makes it harder on the pharmacy staff. There are so many ways to improve the situation but criticizing the practice of pharmacy is not the solution. We can and do provide invaluable service over and over. Where are the stories about the pharmacists helping the patients? Why won’t we talk about that?
In my opinion, the consumer and the pharmacist should take the roles of building a relationship. Let’s work together for the benefit of the patient in a way for the pharmacy to do that. It should be a give and take relationship. We have many customers who understand that when it’s busy then the wait time goes up. The staring and glaring by the others doesn’t make the work get done faster. It’s very distracting and not helpful in any way.
I love being a pharmacist even though the job is very demanding. There are so many rewarding moments.

Another thing that they failed to mention was that often times the 16 year old technicians are smarter and make fewer errors than the 45 year old technician you’ve known for years. Unfortunatly the shortage of pharmacists in this country is so bad that many companies are forced to look to other countries to help fill the gaps. In a perfect world sure we could have only highly trained top of the class pharmacists filling every prescription BUT here in the real world we have to make do with what is available. These companies don’t want any errors made at LEAST as much as the patients they serve. Instead of making the pharmacy staff scapegoats for the problem they should concentrate on the bigger problem with the industry. Give the staff in our neighborhood stores a break they are all doing their best to serve you quickly, professionally, and above all ACCURATELY.

And yet again I have to take time out of a busy day to hold my nose and watch another of these stupid ” investigative reports” (and yes I use sarcastic quotation marks)
There is shame to go around!
First: Shame on you for making the public believe yet again that a high school student is in any way responsible for the mistake you reported.
Second: Shame on the Registered Pharmacist on duty that day for not taking full responsibility for every aspect of the Pharmacy operation under her/his control as required by law in all 50 states and US territories! including the actions of each associate present.
Third: Shame on Walgreen’s corporation for not shielding non-professional associates from the viscious and predatory “journalism” of this report. Have they no policy of responsibility for Licensed Pharmacists and oversight in Licenced pharmacy areas? (Both Pharmacists and Pharmacies require Licencing by state boards of pharmacy.)
Why did your report not name the responsible Pharmacist instead of a
high-school student?
Cry havoc!! for yellow journalism!!

An under-aged employee at Target cannot charge me when I buy medicine so how can a 16 year old be given the authority to process prescriptions at a pharmacy?

According to the a recent study, 100,000 people die from medical errors each year. That is almost one plane crash a day. The number may actually be even higher since it is not yet well accepted for financial and legal reasons to report the actual number by the health care industry. Zero error is the goal but not achievable because of the complexity and the
number of steps involved in the process of providing care including medication dispensing. Every major error is tragic both for the patient and their loved ones and for the person or persons involved in the error. It is very unfortunate that the picture of this 16 year old is now plastered all over the place. As it is, it would have taken a lifetime for her to cope with the error & its concequences even without her being depicted as a “criminal”. My heart goes for both the patient and her family and the 16 year old and her family. A 16 year old should not have been put in that position without extensive supervision. The ultimate responsibility lies with the pharmacist and the pharmacy. Here is the scoop with the pharmacy practice in the retail envionment:
1) The manufacturers have driven the cost of medications up
2) insurance companies have decreased their reimbursement to the pharmacies
3) Contrary to popular belief, pharmacies do not make a large enough margin to cover for enough staff to handle the workload
4) Pharmacy staff, especially the pharmacists are often working under very inhumane conditions (long work days, no break for food, and often no time for a bathroon break, this is not an exageration)
5) Chain pharmacies (i.e. CVS, Walmart, Giant, Safeway, Target, etc) do manage to make a profit by their high volume of prescriptions, lower cost of medications because of high volume purchases, and rebates from manufacturers, and the formulas they use for staffing. Often these formulas are set up so that they can squeeze the maximum out of the overworked of pharmacists and technicians. They do advertise about “caring” and “patient education”, but realistically they do not and cannot deliver on their promise because of the few staff and large volume of workload in their pharmacies.
6) Patients will most likely get better service from the small independet pharmacies. Because, there is more at stake for these pharmacies.
Errors are often the result of system failures. To reduce errors, processes need to be changed often by the frontline professionals (doctors, nurses, pharmacits, etc). Finger pointing and scape goating will not solve the problem.
Here are some solutions:
1) the government / FDA must require a realistic number of pharmacists and technicians per number of presctiptions. (i.e. at least one pharmacist and technician per 200 prescriptions per 8 hour shift. The # of presctiptions may need to be even lower if pharmacies are truely expected to provide real patient counseling as opposed to a paper printout with the medication which often are confusing and do not mean much to the patients) There is a price for quality. If we expect quality, we must be willing to also give enough staffing help to the pharmacists on the fronline.
2) Establish a non-punitive system so that errors can be reported. This way, enough data will be available to develop and implement change to reduce the number of errors.
3)Require pharmacists and pharmacy technicians to take a 1 hour break in between their shift AWAY from the filling area. I do not think that we would expect an air traffic controller to work intensely for 10-12 hours a day with no break (if that day ever comes, I will stop flying).
4) Require pharmacies to only staff pharmacies with board certified pharmacy technicians behind the counter.
Error often do not happen because some “bad people with bad intentions” made the errors. It is almost often a system error. Until what led to the error is not analyzed and the system changed, we should expect the same outcome from another well intentioned, overworked indivitual.
Thanks, Frank. (Pharmacist)

Situation will always exist that make mistakes more likely to occur. Training is vital to ensuring support staff (ie: pharmacy technicians) are utilized to their fullest capacity without creating unsafe situations. The final verification of all prescriptions and the offer to counsel should always be offered by licensed/registered staff.

I am a pharmacy student studying to get my Pharm.D. and I also am an intern with a chain drugstore. I have to go to school for 6 years, while logging at least 1500 hours as an intern. On the other hand, tech regulations vary from state to state, and it is true that oftentimes techs are just high school kids (that’s how I started out). However, it does no one any good to have a scare tactic report come out like this one and frighten the American populace into not getting their prescriptions filled for fear of error. It’s true that mistakes do happen; but we work very, very hard every single day to make sure that every patient receives the best service and care possible. For every rude or inept employee a customer might encounter, there are hundreds if not thousands of caring, sharp, and intelligent ones. And it is so important for the public to realize that a drugstore can’t be like a fast food restaurant and that it does take time to fill a prescription. This report blasts pharmacies for hiring inexperienced techs or for going quickly, but when we work quickly, I can guarantee you we’re not worried about profit margins; we’re worried about getting the customer home quickly, especially if they are in pain. Just because a pharmacy is part of a chain doesn’t make it awful or mean that the employees don’t care about the patients; I care very much about my patients, and my colleagues do too. And it’s also important for patients to be proactive about their health care and work with their doctor and pharmacist to understand what they’re taking, how much of it they’re taking, and why. Instead of blaming the companies or the techs or the pharmacists or anyone else we can find, we need to realize that good communication is phenomenally important and key to quality patient care.

I am a pharmacy student studying to get my Pharm.D. and I also am an intern with a chain drugstore. I have to go to school for 6 years, while logging at least 1500 hours as an intern. On the other hand, tech regulations vary from state to state, and it is true that oftentimes techs are just high school kids (that’s how I started out). However, it does no one any good to have a scare tactic report come out like this one and frighten the American populace into not getting their prescriptions filled for fear of error.
It’s true that mistakes do happen; but we work very, very hard every single day to make sure that every patient receives the best service and care possible. For every rude or inept employee a customer might encounter, there are hundreds if not thousands of caring, sharp, and intelligent ones. And it is so important for the public to realize that a drugstore can’t be like a fast food restaurant and that it does take time to fill a prescription. This report blasts pharmacies for hiring inexperienced techs or for going quickly, but when we work quickly, I can guarantee you we’re not worried about profit margins; we’re worried about getting the customer home quickly, especially if they are in pain.
Just because a pharmacy is part of a chain doesn’t make it awful or mean that the employees don’t care about the patients; I care very much about my patients, and my colleagues do too. And it’s also important for patients to be proactive about their health care and work with their doctor and pharmacist to understand what they’re taking, how much of it they’re taking, and why. Instead of blaming the companies or the techs or the pharmacists or anyone else we can find, we need to realize that good communication is phenomenally important and key to quality patient care.

I’m wondering how did ABC do a legitamate undercover investigation without violating patient confidentiality?

As a Certified Pharmacy Technician, I am very offended at the comments made stating that only Registered Pharmacists should be the only people allowed to even be in the pharmacy and count prescriptions. The test in which one has to take to become Certified isn’t an easy test by far. I studdied for several months. I pride myself in passing with flying colors. My uncle is a Registered Pharmacist and he helped me study. He told me that there were questions on the test that were on his boards.(For those of you who haven’t the slightest clue what boards are, it’s the big test Pharmacists have to take to become a Registered Pharmacist.) You can’t tell me that everyone else is absolutly stupid and incapable of helping the Pharmacist. Yes, I agree that everyone should have the proper training before being thrown into the pharmacy and trusted to do everything that a regular full-time technician is capable of doing, but I do not believe that only a Registered Pharmacist is the only human being capable of doing varoius tasks in the pharmacy. Furthermore, the technician made a mistake entering the prescription into the computer system, but the Pharmacist should have caught the error. Keep in mind, I don’t think errors are acceptable, but I don’t believe the error is entirely the technician’s fault. There are a few bad technicians out there who do need more training, but for the most part most of us are well trained and fully aware of how important it is to not make a mistake.
On the subject of signing your name every time… We ALWAYS ask the patient if they have any questions about their medication and make sure that they understand that if they have questions once they get home to not hesitate to give us a call.

I work as a Walgreen’s pharmacy technician in Florida, and know that Walgreen’s does NOT hire just anybody off the street to handle prescriptions. To work in the pharmacy, technicians must undergo extensive training and job-shadowing. Most of our technicians are very experienced, and a few of our younger technicians are pursuing college medical degrees. I am appalled that Walgreen’s is taking such a fall in the media. Of course, there is not excuse for filling a prescription wrong and employees must ALWAYS be careful of what they are doing. However, the negligent actions of one person does not accurately represent everyone in the Walgreen’s chain.

Ultimately I believe the patients or the patient caregivers should be the final check. It’s your own health after all. If you feel something is not right, ask! Like any healthcare providers (eg. doctors and nurses), pharmacists are human beings and are vulnerable to error (especially when there are phone ringing with 2 or more on hold while 7 patients waiting in line and at the drive-thru all demanding 3 or 4 of their prescriptions to be filled within 10 minutes). Pharmacists are supposed to be the last one to check the medications, but even with 99.999% accuracy, there still a chance for mistake to be made. If you have questions, ask. If you feel something is wrong with your medication, ask!

It is the pharmacists job to double check the prescription filled by the technician. Where is the pharmacists excuse? Quit putting all the blame on the 16 yr. old girl. I am a pharmacy technician student and currently shadowing in pharmacy. The 2 pharmacists I work under make sure they check every prescription after it is filled and then again at the counter with the patient, and as a new prescription, the pharmacist is required to talk to the patient to make sure they understand what they are taking. The main problem is half the time a patient is being counseled, they just nod their head in acceptence of what is being said when they really aren’t even paying attention to what is being said to them. And as the patient, common sense check the prescription yourself when it is handed to you, 1mg is alot different than 10mg. I am sorry for the families loss, but if you think about it, there are 3 irresponsible parties in this whole situation…

As a pharmacy technician I was very upset by this story. I think that ABC is exploiting this poor girl. It is very sad what happened to the woman who’s presciption was misfilled. However, it not the pharmacy technician’s job to make sure that the medication goes out the door correct. It is the Pharmacists!!! She should not be held liable. Something that people have to understand is that Pharmacists are not perfect. They do make mistakes. What happened to that woman does not happen very often and when it does, at my particular pharmacy the pharmacists have to fill out an incident report where the patient is notified as well as the doctor. I just think that everyone should leave this technician alone.

Coumadin TEN times the amount?? The only person to blame here is the pharmacist! It is their responsibility to check and DOUBLE check the patient’s prescription regardless of who filled it before it is given to the patient.
Being a 3rd year pharmacy student, I know how busy community pharmacies are. However, the pharmacist should NOT be allowing unauthorized personal in the pharmacy such as the stock boy. That is against the law!
Also the lawyer states, “She was in high school and her prior job was seving popcorn.” What a great excuse! I was in high school once, and I’m planning on being a pharmacist. So does that mean I can skip the training part and immediately start filling prescriptions? Saves me alot of hassle!

Overcharging is a problem not cited often. I had a major over-charge at Wal-Mart and the pharmacist told me in broken English, “Well that money doesn’t end up in my bank account.”
I changed to Walgreens and TWICE I was charged an incorrect amount, the first time, the pharmacist apologized and blamed “the computer.” The second time, he berated me in front of many customers and then finally admitted that I was, in fact, being overcharged by almost $100. Again I received exactly the same comment. “Well that money doesn’t end up in my bank account.” Is this an industry recommended response?
He won’t have another chance – I have dropped Walgreens for a local pharmacy.
In retrospect, no wonder Walgreens profits are so large – very few people probably realize they’re being overcharged.
Will Bennett,
Fair Oaks, CA

To Anthony who made the first comment: I’m a 2nd year pharmacy student…AMEN to that!!

I work as a certified technician at a local pharmacy in Orlando and mistakes do happen but the pharmacist is always there and catches mistakes if they are made. They way the media is making techs look incapable of counting pills, or matching number on a paper and a bottle. I feel that the pharmacist in charge while the mistakes are made should be fired not promoted. As a former employee of walgreens, we checked the prescriptions 4 times before the staple was put through the bag, sealing it. Also i agree with people thinking a pharmacy is a fast food place, people in the US need to stop being so lazy and take some responsibility. SO now everyone acting like they care about their medications should not treat the place where they get their prescriptions like the place where they get fast food. Today someone refused to signed the acknolegedment log because they heard on the news she was signing something that was giving her right away when in fact most signature logs are used as a way to keep track of the Prescriptions that had been picked up by the patients, so that not very responsible is it? Techs are to pharmacist what nurses are to doctors and what dental technicians are to dentists, without technitians most people would also complain that the doctors are taking too long or that their prescription is gonna take 10mins, people need to be patient and more aware that we are dealing with your health not your appetite.

When I questioned the PHARMACIST about some possible drug interactions, he told me that what I was asking was wrong. And then handed me the pamplet from Walgreens which told me I was right. The next morning I called the manager and she was horrified at how very wrong the pharmacist was. I am hoping she talked to him. At least he didn’t kill me; maybe the next person wasn’t so lucky.

Has ABC reviewed the actual number of pharmacists that graduate each year? The number needed far outweighs the number that are graduating from pharmacy schools across the U.S. The same situation is occurring in other healthcare professions. Errors unfortunately occur (we’re human)–was it reviewed as to how many prescriptions are being filled each day per pharmacist correctly? Most pharmacist are filling an average of 150-200 prescriptions per day each (not counting time to assist patients and consultations). The problem is not specific to one retail chain over another. There are significant pressures on pharmacists secondary to patient needs, restrictions on dispensing over the counter products, insurance company drug coverage, patient’s lack of knowledge of their own prescription policy, poor prescriber handwriting and inappropriate dosing. Was it evaluated as to how much is corrected/caught by the pharmacist review? Please look at the whole issue. From, a tired pharmacist

As a registered Pharmacist in a huge retail chain pharmacy, I am under lots of pressure to provide “customer service” and push out as many prescriptions per minute as possible… after all more prescriptions= more money!
So here is this pressure to stay up to 13 hours on your feet, counsel , answer doctor phone calls, double check medications, type prescriptions, call insurance companies, all while trying to give each customer your individual attention without even a 15 minute break the ENTIRE day! No, I dont believe that there is any excuse for misfilling a prescription. But I do have many ideas for improving this!
Lately the pharmicies are getting bigger, along with the drive thrus, and 25 dollar couppons are circul;ating, encouraging people to take advantage and transfer back and forth.. this adds to so much distraction, you cannot even believe! (sometimes a feel like a work at mcdonalds, and want to ask “would you like fries with that”) and after working 13 to 14 hour shifts, ask any pharmacist how they feel. i GUARANTEE most mistakes are done at the end of a very long shift. this should not be allowed
and they should hire more help..
do you know that more and more hours of technician help is cut back more and more, which puts pressure on the pharmacists
did you know that the retail companies (cvs, walgreens, eckerd, rite aid) and so money hungry that the increase the risk of mistakes at the cost of a patient’s health?
i didnt go to school for this
i iwsh there were laws about how long a pharmacist can work a shift, how much technician help you should have, lab coats that the pharmacist can wear opposed to technician to distinguish from each other, ban the transfering gift card coupons (which prevents me from checking drug interactions at other pharmacies), make cetification to work in the pharmacy imperative, and allow pharmacists to be able to take a break

Walgreens no longer types in info, they sacn the scripts so no errors can be made that way, as a customer I always double check what it is, dosage and for length of time.My pharamacy Walgreens also has a prompt when they ring you up, do you have any questions for the pharamacist?Also the paper log in the pictures looks like a PSE log that I have signed to get Suda-Fed thank you to the Meth-heads

In 2000 I lost my beloved mother
because of a prescription error.
She was in ICU for 33 days until
her death.
When you pick up your presciptions
please verify that it is the correct medicine and dosage.
It’s too late for us!

Maybe 20/20 should do a show from the perspective of the Pharmacy staff to beter educate the public, rather than shame the profession.

It’s time for patients to stop leaving their lives on the hands of health care providers and start getting more educated about the prescriptions they are taking, strength, dosage, directions to take, side effects, etc.
Also it’s ridiculous that doctors scribble a bunch of important information on a piece of paper and the pharmacists and pharmacy techs need to deal with it. That not only is a waste of time but it’s dangerous.

Another reason pharmacies must collect signatures is to show insurance companies the prescription was picked up. If the insurance co feels the script wasn’t within their guidelines they can refuse payment to the pharmacy. Also the pharmacy must prove they offered counseling to Medicaid customers. The pharmacy must take time out of their extremely busy day to collect the info for these audits.

Nina, darn good point. Minors should not be working around meds. Some are even absorbed through the skin. Some need mixed. Interactions should be checked for, people often have multiple MDs writing scripts. People filling Rx need to be qualified for the job. Reading the paper I saw job listings for what is basically a secretary requiring a bachelors degree yet a person in the process of obtaining a GED can fill med scripts? THAT is truly terrifying. I will go to a hospital pharmacy from now on.
I worked as a specifically trained nurse aide with certifications and had years of medical experience, yet it was still against the law for me to hand meds to patients. For good reason as I was not a license holding RN that had aquired pharmicalogical knowledge. WHY are there not similiar laws for pharm techs?

High school students in a pharmacy…. just check your local doctor’s office…. not a real nurse (RN/LPN) in sight. Instead the doc will use medical assistants/office clerks, dress them in scrubs and pass them off as “nurses”. Many patients do not know that their medical care is dependent on a person with a 3 week course and on-the-job training, who gets paid a little more than minimum wage. Next time you go and see your doc ask the “nurse”- are you a RN or a LPN?

The story was incredibly dramatized. I am a pharmacy student. I have worked both as a technician and now as a licensed intern. Technicians are trained to input prescriptions, count, and fill. However, the final responsibility falls on the pharmacist to make sure that the prescription is correct. A prescription is counted and the original stock bottle and Rx bottle to be given to the patient is checked by the pharmacist. The pharmacist checks to make sure the tablets are a match. Mostly importantly, the pharmacist checks to make sure the script was typed in correctly and what is on the script was what was given. There is no reason the student should be blamed for the prescription. It truly was the fault of the pharmacist. So essentially, whether a technician is in high school or not does not make much of a difference.

I am a nurse, I’ve worked in a hospital and in Integrative Medicine.
You should do this kind of story on how hospitals/healthcare contribute to over 100,000 deaths annually.

Sadly, We do not place any responsibility with ourselves as consumers. I have stood in line at my local Rite Aid pharmacy and witnessed customers screaming at store personnel until they were blue in the face simply because they were told that it would be 10-15 minutes to fill their prescription. We live in a society where everything has to be now, now, now. If it takes more than 60 seconds to get your burger at McDonald’s, you deserve a refund. If your pizza does not arrive within 30 minutes, we demand a refund. We expect prescriptions faster and faster. The large chain drug stores are simply responding to consumer demand.
Interestingly, there seem to be many comments attacking large corporations and praising local pharmacies, yet, no one has even presented and real evidence that the local pharmacies are really better.

so sorry for the young girl and the family of the mom.but its not only walgreens,our local cvs has made many errors with rxs in our family alone how many must there really be?and they are always so arrogant about it and no,never an apology.and the kids are my daughters class mates and not the top of the class

The truth hurts huh?? You pharmacist techs well truth truth I like how 20/20 puts this out thanks abc/20/20

I work in a Walgreens that does ~700+ average. How are mistakes counted? We review every rx entered throughout the day (Mn regulation) and if an error is made the patient is notified. If mistakes include typos (cap instead of tab, or misspellings) we might get to an ave of 2 mistakes per day. Wrong drug…maybe 1 or 2 a year. Wrong strength…maybe 1 a week…max. Also, techs do not dispense meds. They enter the rx and fill the vials, using a bar code scanner. The fact that she was is high school is a “red herring” meant to inflame the public. The pharmacist who actually looks at the pills is the ultimate dispenser of the meds.

The lack of responsibility the so-called “spokesperson for the pharmacy chain industy” takes for the actions of employees making the errors on tonight’s broadcast is utterly dispicable. Why did she not offer up what they were doing to prevent such errors? She states time and time again that she “wasn’t there, so couldn’t comment”. Obviously she was not there. She is an executive. It is her job to come up with strategy to work on the so called number one initiative of the pharmacy industry, “patient safety”. This is what we wanted to hear from her. Could it be that she and her company spend more of their time thinking of ways to increase the bottom line?

I’m glad that a report has FINALLY been done. A couple of years ago my daughter had a prescription filled at a Wal-Greens in Jackson, TN we were told that the wait would be a least a hour or more. That was not a problem we had other things to do in the neighborhood. When we picked up the script it said “instill 2 drops by mouth every 4 to 6 hours. IT WAS EAR DROPS! Thank God that this was something that she had taken before and that I saw the deadly mistake. When we questioned the error they acted like it was no big deal. They said ” Oh, were busy and will put the right sticker if you want us too. But the attitude from the techs was like well just be glad that you saw the error. Because of this I’m so much more careful regarding all scripts now filled no matter where any of my scripts are filled. My heart goes out to the families that suffered from needless deadly mistakes made by untrained and neglectful pharmacy employees.

This story by 20/20 was unfair one sided. Pharmacist and their staffs are careing hardworking healthcare professionals and their professions should have not been exploited due to a mistake made by one pharmacist. Shame on 20/20 and ABC news.

waiting to see the 20/20 .. but reading what is here it shows that not alot of people know or understand what goes on behind the pharmacy counter. all too often you see patients who are very impatient about waiting for their prescription to be filled. i say let them wait so i can do my job properly and correctly. i too am a pharmacy technician. where i came from you had to be ptcb certified. not all states require that. too bad, they should. i also feel strongly about making it mandatory that one has professional training thru a pharmacy technician program such as thru a college. there are so many harmful meds out there that if taken wrong can be life threatening.

There is a shortage of 6,000 pharmacists as of 2006. Trained and adequately paid Pharmacy Techs are valuable. Unfortunately, states do not yet register them as they do for even hair dressers. STEP ONE – REGISTER TECHS, STEP TWO – PAY THEM. I have 20 years in the business and have yet to see a rational approach.

I am a married 27 year old working on my master’s degree in special education. My 9 year career as a Certified Pharmacy Technician has supported my efforts. I currently work for a major retail chain as the lead technician. I have undergone extensive on the job training as well as completing 20 Continuing Education hours every year to keep my National and State registration. It makes me very sad to hear slander like this. It seems that there is only one piece of a very large puzzle being looked at here. First of all, the only other employees allowed in my pharmacy are the managers, who are certified as well. Absolutely under no circumstances, is a photo clerk or cashier allowed in the pharmacy!!!!! EVER! As with any business today there is a demand to provide cheaper and faster service. To me, that’s ok for my lunch, but not my prescription. Honestly, over the last nine years I have become very skilled at filling quickly and accurately. I try my best to keep my customers happy, but we fill over 400 scripts daily and most people don’t want to wait more than 15 minutes. Please call in your refills a day ahead of time. Please be patient with us. One will wait in a doctor’s office for an hour, but will give me attitude when I need 20-30 minutes to accurately fill a prescription. It is not a burger and fries, it is a medication that could sadly be disasterous if not prepared correctly. I understand that mistakes happen, but I strongly feel that the wrong image is being promoted here!

This story got your attention, oooo aaaahhhh. Don’t blame it on a specific chain, blame it on the regulating agencies who haven’t set rules. As a manager at Walgreens, I know that training occurs for SEVERAL days before ANY tech is thrown to the wolf-like patients, regardless of age or work background. Journalism as such is sickening and to think this is limited to only Walgreens is absolutely obsurred. For those of you who decided to change pharmacies in light of this piece, good luck finding a pharmacy that is not affected by human error. Furthermore, from what I’ve been a part of, it is more like 1-2% of patients whose RX has an error, not the jaw-dropping 22% ABC dug for.

I find it absolutely disgusting that ABC did this report this way. It is so bias and lying to the American Public. I work at Walgreens as a manager. First of all the only people who are allowed in the pharmacy besides technicians are managers. You might see a photo personal in the pharmacy b/c that person is brilliant and is cross trained!! Second of all there wouldnt be so much pressure on pharmacists if the American people were patient and caring. Just today I had a customer complain b/c the pharmacist told them it was going to take 15 minutes to fill their prescription. The customer told me that” it is only two prescriptions all you have to do is slap a label on it “. Maybe if customers were more understanding and would be willing to wait 30 minutes for a prescription less errors would be made. Also, ABC never once mentioned that Walgreens does an excellent job at customer service. That we greet each customer we see, never let more that 3 people stand in line without calling for help. Or how about the fact that we are opening up a warehouse just for people with disabilities who wouldnt normal find work! ABC you should be ashamed of yourself!! One last thing THAT PICEC OF PAPER YOU SIGN IS NOT WAIVE YOUR RIGHT TO TALK TO A PHARMACIST ABOUT YOUR MEDICATION. IT IS CALLED THE HIPPA ACT!! FEDERAL REGULATED ITEM. SO IF YOU WANT TO GO AFTER SOMEONe FOR THAT BLAME THE GOVERNEMNT.

I am a pharmacy technician and I resent the accusations that people are making about us. Mistakes happen everywhere and I agree with some of the people who have posted here, that consumers should be taking some responsibility for their healthcare. I have had to input prescriptions that were horribly written by doctors, meaning barely discernible, and when I ask the patient, which doctor did you see? or, did doctor tell you what this medication is supposed to be for? All I get are blank faces, I mean, come on, this is unacceptable. Know what medication you are supposed to be taking! I am not saying that prescription errors are acceptable in a pharmacy setting, but, seeing as how we are humans, this is inevitable. There are safeguards in place to minimize, if not eradicate errors completely, and the consumer should be part of this process! Retail pharmacy is still the best place to get your prescriptions filled.

As a Pharmacist in trainingt and a daughter of a pharmacist, I have to say, that it isn’t that uncommon to see mistakes in Pharmacies made anywhere. It is our duty as consumers to double check what the Dr. has written and what the pharmacy has given you as well. I have seen on many occasions when Doctors have made mistakes and the pharmacist has to call and have the doctor change what he had origionally written and the patients have to wait. Technicians are not always to blame when mistakes are made, Pharmacists MUST check a prescription when entered into our computer system. I am not saying that what happened to these people should be shrugged off, but when a pharmacist goes through your consultation when you receive your medication, YOU MUST pay attention to what they are saying to you. Especially when receiving a new prescription, it is your right to have these and should get them if not to just double the check the work of the pharmacy.
There are only about 70 schools for pharmacy in the nation and only a small number of students graduating from each school. having the pharmacists do all of what is involoved in the pharmacy would require anywhere from 5- even 20 pharmacists at a time with out help of the technicians. And the small number of pharmacists that would be working, it would take a MUCH longer time for your script to be filled.

The consumer is just as responsible for their own medications. I have been a long time consumer of Walgreens and have never had a problem. I have always been asked if I need more information. There has always been an attached pamphlet with more information about the medication. It is also important for people to realize that somewhere in that pamphlet OR on the stickers placed on the bottle is a description of the pill you should be getting. It will tell you what the pill will look like (round white pill) and the special and individualized numbers or letters that will be on side 1 and 2 of the pill itself. People need to use a little more common sense in the use of their own medications and realize that yes, people are human and mistakes are made from time to time. That’s why you ask questions if you don’t understand or if something doesn’t seem right.

ABC 20/20 has miss led all of the viewers out there. I work for one of the retail drug stores that they did their story on. I do not know what pharmacy the people at ABC use, but retail pharmacies fill over 65 percent of all prescriptions written by a doctor. If you have ever been into a retail pharmacy, you know that they are busy. You have people dropping off prescriptions, picking up, coming through drive-thru, asking for consults, and calling. The retail setting is very stressful. Pharmacists do not even get a lunch break. ABC should be looking into the bigger picture, Doctors and nurses who write the prescriptions. All doctor offices should be mandated to have electronic prescriptions. I don’t know if you have ever looked at the prescription the doctor wrote for you but if you did you would say what the **** does that say. It is true that doctors have very poor handwriting. You cannot tell what strength the medication is because of their sloppy handwriting. When we call to question it, the doctors do not always get back with us. The patient is upset because we told them that we have to check the dose on their prescription and they go into a heated rage. Or when we tell them, it will take more than 15 minutes to fill. I love it best when the doctors write for a Zpack, a medrol dose pack, or a cream. The patient tells us that it is just in a box and all we have to do is put a label on it. That is not how it works. We have to scan in your prescription, then we have to type it in, then run it through your insurance, then fill it along with the other 7 waiters ahead of you and you want to know why it takes more than 15 minutes to get you prescription ready. That is why. It is not just as simple as to slap a label on it as you may think. If we tell you that it is going to take more than 15 minutes to fill your prescription, trust us that it will take 15 minutes to fill your prescription. We are not going to lie to you. What would you rather us tell you, give me 2 minutes and I we have it ready for you, and then when it is not ready you start to complain, why is it taking you so long. And just for FYI if you owned a company wouldn’t you rather pay a tech 9 something an hour verses 49 for a pharmacist when you could have 5 techs working for the salary of a pharmacist in just one hour. And don’t think that the retail pharmacy or any pharmacy is a McDonalds. We are not cooking your fries or flipping your hamburger patties, we are handling your medication. Medication that is very important to your health. We don’t want to rush your prescription because we do not want to make mistakes that can be avoided at all costs. I bet you money that when this patient dropped off their prescription they said that it was an emergency and that they needed it right away. They pressured the pharmacy staff to get it out in a certain time, she complained when it was not ready and in the end was given the wrong medication.

I place full blame on Big business. If Walgreens didn’t have 3 stores alone in my small town, then they could afford to hire more experienced workers and more help at one location. Walgreens and CVS exist to add to Urban sprawl.

I think we as a society are responsible. The attitude of I needed this yesterday, can’t wait. As big people (adults) we should be responsible for ourselves and loved ones. The world does not revolve around you and your schedule.
I see patients that do not know about their own medications. “I need a refill on my little blue pill. I don’t know the name or what its for.” Patients expect too much. They are not willing to be PATIENT. Call in refills 48 to 72 hours in advance. So if need the doctor can be contacted, the medication can be ordered. You are not the only one taking this medication.
I understand you are sick. Rushing things in anything in life does not help. Rush cooking that hamburger, it probably be raw. Rushing in your car, may cause and accident.
Be Proactive. Request your doctor get software which allows him/her to print our your prescription. Ask the doctor what the medication is for.
If the price is not right, understand that the pharmacy is not dictating what to collect from you. Go home and call who is. We are pharmacist not insurance agents. We did not sell you your insurance policy. Ask me all that you like about your medications.

You all need to get a Rite-Aid in your town.

I am a former Walgreen’s technician. ABS has not presented the facts clearly. Walgreen’s has a strict training program. It took me 80 hours to complete the training before I was allowed into the pharmacy. I was then shadowed for 2 weeks by a certified technician. After my training, I was allowed to take classes that Walgreen’s provided to prepare me for the PTCB national exam. They also paid for that exam. They do this for every technician to better train them. I understand that now this is a requirement for all Walgreen’s technicians. Also, they continually provided me with training programs and offered free continung education. I makes me sick to know that ABC has taken isolated incidents and exploited a great company that has done so much for this country-you see, they didn’t”pocket all of the profits”-but let’s not talk about the good they do, right? I found that this expose was quite one-sided. I have read all of the postings and I have to say, don’t criticize me until you’ve walked a day in my shoes. And as far as floor stockers and photo clerks working in the pharmacy, I have only ever seen them work in the capacity of a cashier-not what ABC made them out to look like. Congrats ABC-you’ve just terrified the general American public! Now people will be scared to death to go to a pharmacy to get their scripts filled. Is this your idea of population control? Why does news have to always be about the bad in everything? The other comments I have read tonight talk about how they have switched from Walgreen’s -I’m switching from ABC! There are 2 other major networks I can watch and over 100 chanels on my cable box-I’m done with you! And for the record-I’m staying with Walgreen’s. They have caught possible over dosing errors made by my medical doctor more than once and called to clarify, they have caught drug allergies that my doctor wasn’t aware of, and they have always answered any questions that I have had. That’s why eventhough I am not a technician for them, I continue to have my medications filled by them. They still have the best system of checks and balances in the industry. ABC- one day when you are so perfect that you can walk on water-then come back to the air waves with an expose like this one. That will never happen-but then again if it did, I wouldn’t be watching it anyway!

As a Walgreens employee I would like to apologize to the people who have been hurt because of an error made at a Walgreens store. It is not acceptable that mistakes occur, but it is inevitable that they will. Walgreens has over 5,000 stores and 200,000 employees… bad things are bound to happen. My favorite comments from all of this are that nobody is perfect & everyone is human. I think that’s the most important thing to remember when looking at a huge corporation such as Walgreens. Just because some people in the company make mistakes (do their job poorly, cheat/steal, sexually harass… whatever the case may be) does not make the entire company bad. In fact, by making such a generalization, you are bringing down the thousands and thousands of quality employees that do a great job every day. Of course an under cover report on television isn’t going to show every side of the story… and the ignorant people in this country will be the ones to not even realize that there are two sides. We live in a society that not only strives for perfection but demands it. And why shouldn’t we? We assume we are so technologically advanced that errors should never occur, things should be done in a quick & timely manner, and a company that has been around for over 100 years should know what the heck it’s doin. The reality is we don’t have perfection…we are always going to want things to be done faster so we’ll never be satisfied….and a company that is run by people, real live people, is bound to have mistakes. Granted, if I were placed in the same situation as one of these families I would have a completely different viewpoint. When it’s your child or mother that’s life has been changed because of an error it’s impossible not to place blame.
My hope is that this investigation has awakened people to see the real problems with our health care system & pharmacies. With the rising senior population needing medical attention/prescriptions, the demand for Health Care professionals such as doctors, nurses, pharmacists… has sky-rocketed! The demand has also brought forth new technologies that need to be perfected. Walgreens has especially taken on this challenge, but it is a work in progress. My advice to everyone would be to be as pro-active as you can be. Be that annoying customer that asks a thousand questions when there are 10 people waiting behind you in line. Be the person that calls when you get home because you thought of another question. Look online and research…actually READ about what you are taking. If you are not getting the attention at the pharmacy you want & deserve… ask for it.

This report sited a university person saying that signing the prescription log essentially waives the right to counseling??? I DONT THINK SO! Every new prescription is required to be offered counseling BY THE PHARMACIST! The patient has a right to say no, and in our pharmacy we indicate this on our signing log. ABC, PLEASE SEND ME A LINK TO THIS LAW!

I will graduate with my Doctor of Pharmacy degree this May. I feel that after the intense educations pharmacists receive, they deserve more respect. I have had so many people ask me why I had to go to school 7 years to “just count pills.” People do not understand that there is more to pharmacy than counting pills. You may not realize it, but your pharmacist is using clinical knowledge to determine if your drug therapy has significant interactions etc…I have worked in a retail pharmacy for 10 years. It appears that everyone thinks that the pharmacy should have your Rx’s ready in a snap; yet, they get upset there is a mistake. There is no reason for mistakes, but we are all human. Also, mistakes are encouraged by those patients who peer at you over the counter huffing and puffing. A pharmacist cant help but feel rushed. It is imporant to realize that pharmacists have a very important role in healthcare and that they should be treated with respect. Also, you may not realize it but positive health outcomes occur everyday in the pharmacy. I wish that ABC would do a special on how many lives pharmacists have SAVED by interfering with prescribed medication.

I think this is ridiculous! People who buy their prescriptions from the pharmacy take no responsibility anymore to make sure what they have is what they need. Nowadays it’s more to have a consumer check there bag to make sure they got both order of fries instead of checking to see if the pills are correct. People need to take some resposibility and learn how their insurance plans work, what medication they need, and not to blame others for mistakes that could easily be fixed. I’,m not saying that the pharmacy is blame free, cause it’s not, but this article pins the whole blame on people just trying to get through the day and do their jobs. I see this as extremely biased and unfair.

I currently work at a retail pharmacy and I was very disturbed by the one sided program that ABC broadcasted. Patients are our number one concern and their safety is very important. What people have to realize is that they have to be understanding of what we are doing, which is looking out for their health, healthcare can’t be rushed. Where I work ALL employees inside the pharmacy are trained and certified. What was also not mentioned was the fact that we have to watch our doctors and how they write their scripts. If you can’t read it have him/her tell you what it is and you write it down yourself so you know what you are getting. I can’t tell you how many doctors we have to call to verify scripts and how many doctors write the wrong dosage. PLEASE check all your scripts, most people read ingredients of foods before they eat it so do the same with your scripts.

Just to repeat what has been said:
This is sensationalism at its best; mistakes happen like this (as tragic as it is) in all areas of life. I am currently at one of the highest-ranked schools in the country completeing my PharmD. It is extremely challenging, and I spend hours upon hours studyiing. It is 3 years of academic coursework and 10 months of rotations. Overall, it is a 4 year program and over 90% of those in my class already have a BS or BA. We are all there for different reasons, but many of us see the flaws in the system/profession and hope that we can advocate for positive change. Unfortunately, Big Pharma’s role and the fact that civilization is driven by money has been ignored in this story. That I am even posting this is just adding to the hype; I wanted to let those know that the path to becoming a pharmacist and wearing that white coat is not an education or a job that we take lightly.

I think this is ridiculous! People who buy their prescriptions from the pharmacy take no responsibility anymore to make sure what they have is what they need. Nowadays it’s more to have a consumer check there bag to make sure they got both order of fries instead of checking to see if the pills are correct. People need to take some resposibility and learn how their insurance plans work, what medication they need, and not to blame others for mistakes that could easily be fixed. I’,m not saying that the pharmacy is blame free, cause it’s not, but this article pins the whole blame on people just trying to get through the day and do their jobs. I see this as extremely biased and unfair.

Yes, it would be nice if EVERYONE were PERFECT at their job! Pharmacists and technicians really don’t sit around trying to think of ways to harm the public; maybe patients should take responsibility, too. There are more problems than this. Everyone’s toddler is on an amphetamine and drug seekers plague pharmacies everyday. Pharmacists would like to slow down and give every patient one on one attention, but as long as the entire country is dependent on drugs it won’t happen any time soon.

I just filled a prescription at Walgreens this week and noticed that the dosage and directions were different from the doctors. I called the pharmacy and found out they did make an error in dosage and directions had been left out – because “there wasn’t enought room on the bottle for the directions!” Good thing I even noticed!

Please look up the tragic story of Jose King and how after Jose’s unfortunate death, her family instead of suing, joind forces with the Johns hopkins Hospital (where the error occured) and made amazing things happen in improving patient safety. Thanks to this joint effort, many errors have been prevented at Hopkins and other institutions around the country.
CP

We, pharmacists, do care!!

I would like to point out the huge staffing issue in pharamcy across the nation in both pharmacists and technicians. In our pharmacy, we had two technicians leave at the same time and even with massive recruitment strategies it took us 6 months to hire two new technicians.
Even while trying to explain a staffing shortage to customers, most demanded their prescriptions be filled in 5 minutes. I think the public needs to be realistic as to what a pharmacy can do. The public should not be asking the pharmacy where toothpaste is.
In addition, most pharmacist across the country work for 8 hours straight with no meal breaks. It would be safer for pharmacies to close for 30 minutes although the public outcry over such an “inconvenience” would never allow such a practice to occur.
But a lot of errors are propagated at the doctor’s office. I have transcribed prescriptions from receptionists who can’t even pronounce the name of the medication. When I ask for clarification most just say that is what the notes say. I have to insist they ask the doctor to clarify the problem.
Oftentimes its not the chain but the individual pharmacy. Some pharmacies are run like well oiled machines wheras others are rather chaotic.
And now with all pseudoephedrine product purchases requiring registration, pharmacies are becoming even more hectic.

As a pharmacist, I am very concerned and outraged. How dare the news media spin this story as if this was common in the world of pharmacy. Pharmacists have technicians to assist in the dispensing of medications to patients. In every pharmacy across the nation, every prescription must, by law, be verified by a pharmacist. The technician should not be blamed by this incident. It is always, always the responsibility of the pharmacist on duty to make sure every prescription is correct. However, in today’s society, who really is to blame, when patients demand speedy service more than accuracy? Patients need to understand–do you want your prescription fast or accurate??? Patients must understand that it takes extensive thought and consideration for your prescriptions, and it is more difficult than placing “30 pills in a bottle.” As pharmacists, we must evaluate and consider every medication and every dose you bring into a pharmacy to get filled. We are dealing with chemicals that alter the physiology of the human body. This is not “kids play”, and requires conscious and accurate thought of the pharmacy staff. The next time you go to your local pharmacy, please consider this: there was a customer before you and there will be a customer after you. If you scream and yell at the pharmacy crew because it will take 20 minutes to get your prescription filled, or your medication is not covered by your insurance company, or because you didn’t go to your doctor for refills and now need your medication, your actions will affect every single patient that will be serviced by that pharmacy after you leave. Think to yourself–how would you feel if you were the patient filling a prescription after some crazy, eradiate patient upset the whole pharmacy team? Not good, I hope. Pharmacists, by law, cannot leave a pharmacy unattended without coverage, this fact is extremely difficult for pharmacists to deal with. Would you want that responsibility? Could you handle that responsibly?

THANKS 20/20 FOR MAKING THE GOOD TECHS LOOK BAD.PLEASE DO MORE RESEARCH BEFORE YOU DO STORIES LIKE THAT. NOW BESIDES HAVING TO FILL 600 RXS, CALL INS CO.,GET THE DRIVE THRU,COUNT PILLS,CALL DOCTORS,AND RESTOCK DRUGS NOW I HAVE TO ANSWER TO ALL THE PEOPLE WHO SAW THIS BIASED SHOW. SUPER WORK. FROM AN OVER WORKED UNDERPAID CERTIFIED TECHNICIAN

I have been a pharmacy technician for 18 years now ( nationally certified for 7 now)….I do not believe in unexcussed errors..every error in our pharmacy “walgreens by the way” gets reported to the pharmacy board…just because one walgreens messes up or has a bad rap in your area doesnt mean that you should be critizing every walgreens store in the area….i work in a walgreens that fills over 700 scripts a day and we have 100′s of customers who seem to think that they are more important than all the other customers in the store..the customers complain about 1 hour wait times , drive thru not fast enough, druggies constantly wanting there scripts early……all i have to say about this is one thing…get a grip all of you “Do you want quality or speed?…”…last time I checked quality is more important..so the next time we have to ask you to come back in an hour or so….just remember we are trying to get your script right…so back off!!!!!

Pharmacies are handled like many businesses the only difference is that when a pharmacy tech makes a mistake it can be a life or death situation. You have one person who has the necessary training and group of cheap labor unqualified and barely trained to get by and learn on the fly.

The report centered on obtaining signatures from pharmacists that state that they did not want consultation is not all true. At CVS/Pharmacy we have a great signature log. One side they sign if it is new and they will be receiving consultation the other states that they don’t want consultation such as for refills. Whenever it is new we ask them sign the side that states “Yes, I would like to speak to the pharmacist regarding my medication, etc.” and if at the time we let the patient know that we will have the pharmacist explain the medication to them, they deny the consultation, we ask them to initial the side that states, “No, I would not like to speak to the pharmacist regarding my medication, etc.” We also you the log for audits in insurance claims, when the insurance wants to make sure the patient picked up the medication and also in circumstances when the patient says they haven’t picked up the medication, we show them their signature of when they picked it up and the whole thing is resolved. This story was not completely correct.

For those who feel that:
They (pharmacists) “take their job more seriously and care more about a patient’s healthcare than the patient’s do themselves.” That sounds a bit over the top. I believe that pharmacists care (and some care a lot), but who cares more about their life than that actual person? Did you ever think that some patient’s just trust that that their doctors and pharmacists know best and they don’t feel the need to know all the details of the meds? I, myself, am not one of these people, as I am very knowledgable when it comes to my meds. Some people, however, (in particular, the older generations) are brought up to not question doctors or pharmacists and just believe they know best. They may feel it’s disrespectful to question their doctor (or pharmacist, for that matter). That’s how my grandmas are…it’s not that they don’t care about themselves – they just were brought up in a different generation. Even some of the younger generations just trust the doctors (and pharmacists) will take care of them. I don’t think it’s that these people don’t care about their healthcare…perhaps, they just don’t feel that need to question their care. (Not that I agree with that…I feel people should be more knowledgable about their healthcare, but to say you (a pharmacist) care more about their healthcare than they do is what bothers me.)

I have worked in a major retail pharmacy chain for over 5 years. Never has a prescription gone out to a customer without being checked by the registered pharmacist on duty. To put blame on the 16 year old pharmacy technician is wrong. I also don’t believe she was a pharmacy technician at all, I know in my state you have to have a high school diploma and be at least 18 years of age. People think pharmacy is a mindless job and all we care about is making money. For one, I can barely keep my head above water with my wages, and the stress patients put me under is enormous. Nothing is ever good enough. I’m tired of the misunderstanding people have with how much it takes to fill your ONE prescription. It’s never just, “slap a label on a bottle” and give it to you. I know I personaly have to call the doctors office at least two or three times per day to verify a drug or directions on a prescription and 9 times out of 10 the problem is fixed and the patient never even knew there was a problem to begin with. If you feel better going to a mom and pop pharmacy, do it, that’s your business, but to say they care more than a retail pharmacy is bologne. The people who work at your retail pharmacy also probably lives in the same neighborhood as you do, we’re only human. If I were to speak for all of us technicians we take pride in our work and we care about our jobs. But I tell you one thing, a mom and pop pharmacy isn’t doing 500 prescriptions per day. If they were, i don’t think you’d want to go there, they wouldn’t be prepared to deal with that, and probably don’t want to for that matter. I think one thing that should be mandatory is for doctors to give out legible prescriptions preferably the computer generated ones that a lot of primary care and emergency room doctors are using these days.

I use to think of 20/20 as a reputable news source, but after this segment on pharmacy errors, I’ve lost almost all credibility for this show. The completely blow the storyline out of proportion and don’t even cover the news evenly from different angles. They kept reiterating the fact that there were 16-year old highschoolers that were filling prescriptions. How is this any different than letting a 16-year old drive a car at 60mph? At least in the pharmacy, there is a pharmacist that is ultimately responsible for the medication that is dispensed. In the case where there was a misfill of Warfarin 10mg instead of 1mg, this is not the technicians fault. 20/20 didn’t even show what the actual prescription looked like! Maybe it looked like 10mg a day! (Which is a high, but completely legitimate dose). At any rate, if a patient gets the wrong medication, the fault is going to be on the pharmacist. Let’s get something straight. Pharmacists are going to make mistakes. I don’t care how good of a pharmacist you are, everybody makes mistakes. I can’t believe 20/20 showed photos and names of some poor Walgreens pharmacist! What did they expect? Should that pharmacist be banned from practicing pharmacy ever again because he made an accidental error? Also, they showed patients getting prescriptions, and then adding a bottle of Aspirin to their purchase at the last minute. I am not surprised that some of the pharmacies didn’t catch the drug interaction because the patient did not ask about it! What happens if the patient decides to make the Aspirin purchase at the cashiers at the front of the store? Do we need to start carrying Aspirin behind the counter in the pharmacy now similar to Pseudoephedrine in certain states? 20/20 needs to do more thorough investigating to prevent more misleading news segments in the future. I am very disappointed in 20/20′s reporting methods.

When I was living in the US, I never understood why you had to get a prescription “filled” in the first place. I’ve always found the system rather unsettling, there’s too much chances of mistakes along the way.
In Italy and Germany you bring your doctor’s prescription to the pharmacy, and the pharmacist just gives you a prepackaged box (from drug company) matching your prescription. The box is clearly labeled on the outside and contains instructions and warnings as well. You’d have to be blind not to notice, if you ever got the wrong box.

I am a licensed pharmacist and I teach at a school of pharmacy. It’s tragic that the technician made an error with the warfarin prescription, but the ultimate responsibility lies with the pharmacist, not the technician. For each prescription, the pharmacist is supposed to check the physical prescription against the computer-generated label and the against the label on the bottle from which the tablets were dispensed. In this case, it was the pharmacist’s responsibility to notice that the prescription said “1 mg” and the technician typed “10 mg”. To be honest, counting out tablets is not particularly difficult and there really isn’t any reason why people who aren’t pharmacists can’t be used to assist the pharmacist. But it’s the pharmacist’s responsibility to ensure that every prescription is dispensed correctly.
The signing away of counseling (an OBRA 90 requirement) is a common practice which I have found objectionable for years. I encourage everyone who picks up a prescription to read the small type next to the place where they have to sign and ask the pharmacist exactly what they are signing.

when i pick up and sign for my meds and they,cvs, tells me that the signing tells the company who picked up the meds.is that really true? but i do always double check the label and meds to make sure thats what i have especially on refills.it’s hard though on a new script.there is usually reading material attached explaining your drug too.i read it… do you?

to begin with…. a 16 year old should not be typing prescriptions or
filling them. Only an experenced tech
or a expeniced cpht. can type and fill rx’s.
where was the pharmacist?

Does 20/20 Pharmacy Investigation cover mail order pharmacies?
Our Blue Cross insurance strongly encourages patients to use mail order. If a drug is refilled 3 times the prescription drug is a maintenance drug. All maintenance drugs filled at the local retail pharmacy cost raises to $75 for a 30 day supply, but through mail order the cost lowers to $5-25 depending on the type of drug. We can not afford to be paying the higher price and feel forced to use the mail order option.
There is no personal contact. All refill orders are through an automatic telephone service, website, or order by mail. All prescriptions are shipped via mail. The in personalization blinds the assurance of accuracy. How does a person find information about mail order pharmacies procedures and practices?

I work as a Pharmacist for CVS pharmacy and these big corporates try to grab the last penny possible by hiring untrained or not properly trained help for the pharmacist and then when something goes wrong they blame it on their own pharmacist and in the past few years they have also been hiring untrained and with no proper schooling pharmacist from foregin countries, i have had the displeasure to work with some of these pharmacist and the dont even know the basic interactions of some of the medications, all these foregin pharmacist have to do to be able to be liscenced to work in the USA is to do a 500 hour internship and pass the national pharmacy exam, this exam is a joke any decent pharmacy technician can study a book for about 3 months and pass this exam.

I have been a technician for the past 10 years. I have worked both retail and independent pharmacies. In both stores I have seen the same mistakes so when saying independents don’t make as many mistakes where are you getting your information. Chains are targeted by the media because there are thousands of them and more chances of getting the information to report.
The fact they are a chain more people know who they are and the shock value effect is much higher. If ABC reported that say Peanuts pharmacy in Nebraska was hiring 16 year olds and mistakes have been made people would not have noticed because it is one store in one town. It cannot be related to someone in every state. It would not have been reported. The chain hires what is available with respect to the laws and the responsibility to the individual. When people are pulled from the floor to help they are generally used at the register only.

I take a controlled substance prescription that I filled a few months ago. When I got home I realized that in my bottle were two different strengths of the same medicine, hydrocodone. I took it back to the pharmacy and told them of the mistake. It was looked into and refilled correctly the second time. The ‘tech’ that filled it was fired and the pharmicist is still there. Because it is a controlled substance, I was told that it has to be looked at twice by the tech and once by the pharmicist. That means that it was looked at three times and no one noticed that half of the pills were larger than the others. I don’t think so. I think that the pharmicist should have met the same fate as the tech considering the nature of the medicine. I asked them what would have happened if it had been a senior citizen or someone with impaired vision that might not have seen the difference. What if it were someone’s heart medicine? I also told the store manager this and the regional manager of this pharmacy to make sure that this would not happen again. I can tell you that I check all my scripts the minute I get home, for accuracy and quantity. I did receive many “looks” from the tech’s fellow employees in the weeks after the incident, like I was the one who had done something wrong and gotten her fired.

I personally worked in Pharmacy for about 1 year and 4 months. Prior to employment I had received a certificate for Pharmacy Technician training and while employed in Pharmcy took and passed the National Certified Pharmacy Technician Exam.
From personal experience, I feel the underlying problem at the stores are favoritism within the ranks. I am 43 years old, have worked since I was 17 and feel I have a better work ethic than my younger counterparts. I have experience in customer service and in getting the job done CORRECTLY as opposed to avoiding situations. Younger employees have the habit of taking things too personal and throwing their hands up if there is a difficult situation to handle.
Also when the pharmacist is concentrating on how many prescriptions are being generated as opposed to making sure that each and every prescription is accurate makes for too many mistakes.
I had the opportunity to become a senior Tech at one of the stores that I worked at. The managing pharmacist didn’t want to give me the position because she said that I needed “more training”. The real reason was that she wanted to give the position to another tech that was her friend, was 24 years old, worked in pharmacy for 3 years and did not pass the same exam that I took. It got to the point that I could not take working there anymore because it seemed like it was “play time” for everyone else everythime I went to work.
I take Pharmacy work very seriously. We are the final step in a patients therapy. When this is compromised, the patient suffers.

My 8 year old son was given an antipsychotic drug only approved for adults instead of his allergy meds for a runny nose. Not only did his allergies and asthma get worse, he suffered an accident and was in a leg brace due to the dizziness the meds caused, suffered mood swings, couldn’t stay awake, and suffered academically in school. We received an “apology” letter and a gift card to Rite Aid and the card was full of spelling errors.

I worked the first 11 years out of pharmacy school in RETAIL HELL! The BIGGEST UNREPORTED PROBLEM in this story is PHARMACIST SHORTAGE!!! I graduated in 1994 with a B.S. the Pharm D. program started at my school in 1996, so instead of taking you 5 years to become a pharmacist it is now 6…and NO if I went back to school (which would take me 2 years because of still having to work 12 hour shifts and raise a family, not to mention the cost) I would get paid no more money by the retail chain I work for. B.S. vs. Pharm. D. it doesn’t matter, same pay.
By the year 2020 it is estimated that there will be over 150,000 holes, vacancies, and there is no increase in the amount of pharmacy students graduating. I graduated in 1994 with a class size 82 students and the graduating class in 2006 was 76.
In no part of my schooling did I get taught to be an INSURANCE AGENT!!! And out of a 12 hour shift filling 350+ rx’s I (or my technicians) spend at least 3 hours ON HOLD with insurance companies trying to get PRIOR AUTHORIZATIONS APPROVED, Dr.’s to change rx’s because the med. isn’t covered, etc and after doing all of this the patient decides they don’t want it because the copay is too high!!

What is most upseting about people blaming the techs and pharmacies for errors is that people don’t read their prescription information prior to taking it. I went to a doctor who, although I made it expressly clear that I had an allergy to sulfa, continued to prescribe a medication containing it to me. I hadn’t even left the pharmacy when, reading the information given to me, did I realize that there was an error.
Doctors, Pharmacists, and technicians are all overworked, overburdened, and under-appreciated. To assume that they make no mistakes is ridiculous; you are the last line of defense before taking anything into your body and if you don’t havet the wherewithal to be informed about what’s going into your body, then you shouldn’t turn the blame on someone else. I have two sisters who are pharmacy techs and my husband is currently in school, working towards his PharmD., and I see the amount of schooling that is necessary for them to obtain their licenses, as well as the continuing education hours that are required each year in order to keep current. One girl makes a mistake, and it’s sensational so everyone gets all up in arms about it; she’s human, just like you are. Don’t assume that people in the medical community are infallible, because you are the one who will pay the price.

I am very sorry for the people who appeared in the report however I am discusted with the reporter, the producers and mostly the pharmacy school who put together such a report to destroy the image of trust that we as pharmacist have with our patients. I am all for such a report but you know why not mention the amount of effort we do on daily basis spending countless of hours on the phone with insurance companies anf physicianc trying to correct mistake and making sure the medication is ready when the patient comes back.
as for the high school issue, the last time I checked this was america, a place where you can not discriminate against someone based on age. so if you the reporter and the two professor you got to do the study with you have a problem, the right channel is the legislator to change the language of the law that say working toward a high school and ged not already graduated.
I was also discusted by the lawyer’s comment that the tachnician’s last job was cleaning popcorn in a movie theater, you know waht is the problem with that, are ashamed of people with low paying job getting traned and improving their lives. two years ago I was cleaning dishes, today I have two doctorate degrees, so maybe that lawyer would not like some one like me filling her prescription, not all of us are born with a silver spoon.

I am the wife of a Pharmacy Student at one of the top Pharmacy Schools in the nation. First of all, I want to address the shortage of Pharmacists. Do you ever stop to think that one of the reasons that there are shortages is because Pharmacists are now doctors when they graduate and the application process alone for pharmacy school is a very long and stressful ordeal. These applicants must have the best GPA’s and PCAT scores to even be considered. My husband graduated with a Bachelors degree in Biology with a minor in Chemistry before applying to Pharm School. So let’s face it, it’s a hard program, you have to be incredibly intelligent. Did it ever enter your mind that the shortage may be due to the lack of ability? Your average Joe wouldn’t even be considered for Pharm. School, let alone be able to graduate. I see my husband study for hours every night, and that’s just during his regular weeks of school. Don’t even get me started on what it’s like for him during Block weeks, when he has to endure 7 three hour tests over the weekend. This type of studying and learning will go on for the next two years, then his last year will be nothing but rotations. He will go through 10, one month rotations before he can graduate, just thought those of you who assumed Pharmacists just graduate and jump right in would like to know that they do have their time of internship!
Second, my husband currently works for an independent pharmacists so I know first hand what they go through. I can’t tell you how many 10 and 11 hour days I have seen my husband work and come home completely exhausted, and didn’t even get a lunch break. Pharmacists are so under appreciated. Their main concern is the care of the patient, and yes they are patients, not customers. A pharmacy is a clinic, not a store. So let’s try getting the terminology right. I can’t tell you how many times I have been out with my husband and his boss and they are both stopped, on their free time I might add, and asked questions by people who aren’t even their patients and they are always more than willing to help.

The bottom line is that you have to be an EXTREMELY educated medical consumer…I go to my doctor with a list of written questions and, after every test, etc. I pick up a copy of the lab report, etc. and keep a file at home. I look all meds up on the internet for contraindications and examine each script, count my pills, etc. before I take anything. Because of greed, there is no business that does not cut costs and aim for sloppy, high-volume, to show their stockholders a profit….you have to be on it every minute…

As a technician (and a damn good one at that) this “attack” on my profession is an insult. It is impossible to be perfect when you must cater to the customer, explain the insurance and it’s coverage, ring the register, answer the phone, and fill prescriptions, all under the scrutiny of impatient patients. You spindoctors hurt the reputation of pharmacists when it is the actions of these corporations who inhibit their ability to focus on the actual science of pharmacology in which they have been extensively educated and trained.

Consumers are just as responsible for their own medication as the pharmacists and technicians.
Even when the bottle of meds is labeled correctly, the label tells the consumer exactly what color & shape the pill inside should be. For example, if your bottle says the pill is yellow and round in shape but what you received is pink and oblonged, do you not question why the difference and continue to take the medication, knowing that the pill is different than the bottle says it should look like or should you be ASKING the pharmacy FIRST before you take it? OF COURSE YOU SHOULD ALWAYS ASK ! BUT SOME CONSUMERS DON’T EVEN TAKE THE TIME TO READ THE BOTTLE AND THE INFORMATION THAT COMES ALONG WITH IT, THEN WHEN THERE IS A MISTAKE, IT’S NEVER THEIR FAULT BECAUSE THEY DID NOT READ THE INFORMATION OR ASK QUESTIONS WHEN THE EMPLOYEE SAYS “DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS FOR THE PHARMACIST”, WHICH IS ALWAYS STANDARD PRACTICE IN A WALGREENS. THEY DON’T WANT TO ACCEPT SOME OF THE BLAME AND THEY NEED TO., THEY ARE AS MUCH TO BLAME AS THE PHARMACIST & TECHNICIANS. BUT IT IS ALWAYS EASIER TO BLAME SOMEONE ELSE FOR ONE’S OWN IGNORANCE.

I have an idea….why don’t we start dispensing prescriptions through vending machines…

Why don’t we just go with robotics and ATM drug dispensers? Computers seem to be what we can’t live without these days so why not incorporate both? Go pick up a can of Pepsi and you Rx at the same time. We do it for movie tickets, condoms, etc.

As a pharmacy student one year from entering my lifelong practice as a pharmacist, this concerning matter is very important to me as well as all those working in the healthcare industry. The fact is that no one wants these tragic accidents to happen, but unfortuneately we are humans and mistakes will occur. The high school student was doing her job. I’m positive that she is accurate most of the time. She, however, made a mistake. 99.9% of the time that mistake will be caught by the pharmacist. In this particular case it was sold to the patient. It’s terrible that this happens, but the fact is that sometimes it just does.
At this point, we want our patients to be in charge. This is were the responsiblity leaves the pharamacy. At this point it is the patients resposibity to ask, and take an active role in the management of thier healthcare. We in the pharmacy do our part to make sure you get you the right prescription. After we give you the prescription, it becomes your responsility to make sure we gave you the right prescription. Ignorance is the biggest threat to healthcare. Quit relying on others to take care of you. Be proactive at the physicians office and ask why you are getting that particular medication. Be informed when you pick up your prescription at the pharmacy. You have the right to counseling…USE IT!
We are all humans and mistakes will happen no matter how many checks we put in place. Quit looking to put all the blame somewhere else, and start taking responsiblity for yourselves. I want the best for all my patients, but i tell each and every one of them that their healthcare is most importantly their responsiblity at the end of the day. My patients live with the disease not me, so be informed, be knowledgeable, and be ready to actively learn more about your healthcare needs so that i can better help you, and be sure you are getting correct treatment!

I would just like to say YES pharmacies can make mistakes, but just remember that they are human and human error is inevitable. However, I would just like remind everyone that a tech’s job is basically to make the pharmacist’s job easier so that they can pay more attention to what is important which is the patient. I do work at a small pharmacy with only a high school diploma & I enjoy my work. I am grateful that I do not work for a large chain, because of the different problems that they see more of than we do.
What bothers me the most is what responsibility does the patient have?? I hear it at least 5 times a day… We have atenolol ready for you. Is this what you are looking for? The patient then responds by saying…I don’t know the little round white pill.(for those who don’t know atenolol is a round white pill) People need to remember that because mistakes can happen that it is sooo important that they ask questions, pay attention it is your health after all!!
As for large chain pharmacies I do agree that there is to much focus on the bottom dollar. I have no desire to ever work for Walgreen’s or CVS just because of stories I hear from my coworkers who have worked for either one. We have many patients that often come back to us after using mail order or any other big pharmacy because of the personal attention and special intrest that we take in their care.

I dont think the public understands what goes on behind our pharmacy counters. They keep mentioning that a 16 year old was filling prescriptions. NO a 16 year old isnt filling your prescriptions, your pharmacist is! the only thing the technician does is type your prescriptions and pour the pills into the bottles. the pharmacist is the one who checks to make sure the rx is typed correctly and at the end point @ walgreens you scan the vial and a picture of the actual pill pops on the screen which is our last check before it is bagged. if the rx is for lipitor 10mg and the tech accidently picks up lipitor 20mg the error will be caught 10 times out of 10 b/c our scale’s scanning system will catch it.
They should have walked the public through point a to point z when dropping off an rx with walgreens just to show how error-proof our technology is. the technician IS’NT the one checking your drug drug interactions, your PEnicillin allergies, your duplicate drugs, your change of therapy. WE PHARMacists are the ones working our butts off behind those counters and our techs are hard working, and unappreciated.
Dealing with the public is not easy guys, especially with the older patients and LOrd help us trying to explain medicare part D and how they have to pay $3000 out of pocket b4 insurance jumps in. Im not putting down any other professions but what other profession do you have to deal with issues thrown at you all at once???

Is there a reason that Walgreens was the focus/target? Did they do something to anger the people of ABC? There are other large and small chains that have similar work environments.
Just because they are in business to make a profit does not mean they do not care about patients.
It seems that pharmacy is to other professions, particularly health care professions.
When you go to the doctor, dentist, etc, there’s always assistants who are less educated (but hopefully well-trained) that help with the workload.
Even though this was really one-sided and unfair, hopefully it makes patients focus take charge of their own healthcare (calling the doctor yourself, etc). It should also make pharmacists slow down just a bit & focus a little bit more.
The reporting did not look at the good that pharmacists do, but I’m trying to look for the good that this bad journalism can do???

Please name the profession that there are no errors? Errors are unacceptable but they are HUMAN. The last time i checked Pharmacist’s and pharmacy tech’s are human.

I have never been to a pharmacy where any of the customers were yelling, screaming or getting huffy over waiting. I give 24 hours to fill scripts. I drop them off and pick up the next day. The only exception being if we are at the Children’s Hospital urgent care or ER. Then we use the hospital pharmacy and are usually the onlt walk up patients there at that hour and we patiently wait.
I worked in patient care and I know how people can be at times. Just smile sweetly and say, ” I’m so sorry dear. I’ll take care of you as soon as I can. Your health is important to me and I wouldn’t want to make a serious error.”

It’s not just Walgreen’s. As an RN, I was shocked to hear from my patients that, when they are given the wrong drug or dose at the pharmacy, they just get an “oh well” reaction… As the article said “they know errors are bound to occur”. Working as an RN in a hospital, if you make a medication error, you report it as an incident report, it goes to a committee for review, if it recurs, you are monitored and may get a warning, lose your job and/or your license – depending on the nature or number of occurrences. I wonder what kind of accountability, if any, occurs like this in the pharmacy business – or do they just hold their breath until there is a lawsuit… BTW, nurses have missed lunches and avoided bathroom breaks due to being so busy LONG before the insurance crises and for a LOT less money than pharmacists. We all choose our professions and we can choose a different one…

ABC,
I work as a certified pharmacy technician for a retail pharmacy in New York State. While, your intentions for last night’s expose were high, the quality of your accuracy was not.
First off, I want to clarify that when people pick up their prescriptions and sign, yes they are signing as to whether or not they have received counsel by the pharmacist (usually they are asked if this is a new medication for the patient, if the patient says “yes” the pharmacist will counsel. If the patient says “no”, then they are asked if they have any questions, if not they have refused counsel). HOWEVER, they are also signing to verify that the prescription has been picked up. If an insurance company, patient, doctor questions whether or not a prescription has left the pharmacy, that signature shows proof of that. Your documentary made it seem as though this was a complete lie, and it is NOT.
Secondly, I really bothers me that you make a pharmacy technician sound as though we are random people off the street who needed a job. In most states, to be a pharmacy technician you must be at least 18 years of age with a High School Diploma or GED. Also, you must pass a complete background check. Many technicians, like myself, have gone one to take training courses and gain national certification as a technician.

I have worked in the pharmacy industry for 20 years, first as a pharmacy clerk, technician, and now as registered pharmacist. I have seen vast changes in the industry. Pharmacist were once highly respected healthcare professionals, now we are treated like fast food workers and insurance adjusters.
I feel that some of the larger chain pharmacies put their registered pharmacists at great risk. We work often 10 to 12 hour shifts without breaks, lunches, or even access to a restroom. We have limited staff, usually only one pharmacist on duty per 5-10 technicians or clerks, depending on the volumne of the store. While I believe most of the support staff is highly trained, it still posses a risk for the patient. When a retail pharmacy is filling a high volumn of prescriptions (sometimes 800-1000 prescriptions per day) and there is only 2 registered pharmacist on duty to double check all rxs, answer phones, discuss pt therapies with md, discuss otc therapies with walk in customers, etc., the quality assurance is compromised.

This story is extremely one-sided and it’s obvious the story was done to get a rise out of the public. I am a third year pharmacy student at a highly ranked college of pharmacy and I can assure that your pharmacists are well-trained if they have earned a PharmD or RPh degree from the United States. I cannot speak for pharmacists from other countries. While in pharmacy school, each state has a mandate of how many intern hours we must have before getting licensed as a pharmacist upon passing the pharmacy board exam and the state law exam. For my state, it is 1500 hours. It is tragic that medical errors occur, but it is also very easy for the media to choose an extremely heart breaking story to publicize and leave out the fact that millions of prescriptions are filled correctly everyday.

This is not just a Walgreens problem!! This is a problem at ALL larger chain pharmacies. Ive worked at many large chain retail pharmacies (Walmart, Fred Meyer, Costco, Safeway)and they all over work their pharmacist and technicians. I currently work as a relief pharmacist for a large chain (The busiest Costco in the entire chain) and a small compounding pharmacy. The difference in the work enviroment is astounding!! I feel when I work at Costco the mentallity is work “faster, faster, faster” and when I work at the compounding pharmacy I can work smarter, smarter, smarter. I can actually use the skills I learned in pharmacy school

What the story does not tell is the steps that all chain drug stores have taken over past several years to help prevent medication errors. The two stories that were told in happened 5 and 8 years ago. Within that time chain drug stores have implemented many new procedures and technologies to help prevent all errors. Some examples of these are bar code scanning for product selection, imaging of prescriptions, and automated drug delivery systems.
Furthermore, within the last 5 years many state Boards of Pharmacy have implemented licensing of pharmacy technicians to ensure proper credentials. In most states, pharmacy technicians must pass a national examination and have extensive training before they are allowed to work in the pharmacy.
To say that only pharmacists should be back in the pharmacy filling prescriptions is ridiculous. There are only 92 schools of pharmacy in the United States. Each school graduates about 100 to 150 new pharmacists per year. With the aging population needing more and more prescription drugs every year pharmacists rely on pharmacy technicians to perform the ancillary and technical duties while the pharmacist can concentrate on drug interaction review and patient counseling. One error is too many to any pharmacist

Having been a pharmacist for 8 years now, this whole story disappoints me for reasons too vast to explain. Thank you to one of the MD respondants above that states that errors are unacceptable, but inevitable. I guess that I must ask a few important questions to other health care providers and patients:
1) Providers–Can you read what you actually wrote on the patient’s prescription?
2) Providers–When a RPh calls you for clarification, how do you intercept their phone call for clarification or intervention?
3) Patients–How many times have you actually asked to speak with the pharmacist? How many times have you “declined counseling” when it could have benefited you?
4) Patients–Do you value your own healthcare so little that you are willing to use a “drive-through” to receive your new or existing prescriptions? ( and if you do, how is the RPh supposed to counsel you?)
Healthcare needs to be a team effort by all individual healthcare providers and recipients (patients!).
I really believe to solve our medication problems, we need to work together and not continue to point fingers.

I’m a pharmacy technician, and the sad thing is, for every state like mine (washington) that requires education to be a tech, there are AT LEAST 2 that don’t. what we need is standard education/training requirements that equal or exceed Washington’s standards!

For everyone’s information, though very tragic, this error could have been prevented by the patient simply taking to the time to verify she was given the right medication. The pills are different colors. On top of this, Coumadin is actually used to prevent stroke from clots. As a result, a coumadin overdose would produce a bleed, not a stroke. This is just one example of the gross negligence and lack of thought that went into this report. Was the patient accurately counseled on this medication by her physician with regard to the correct strength? Was the prescription even legible?Did the patient even look at her prescription after receiving it to see that she got right medication, at the right dose, with the right directions? This report, along with the general public, forget that pharmacists are human and only one part of the medication process, a process that includes resposibility on the part of the patient. Im am truly empathetic to woman who received the wrong dose of medication as well as her family, but this report only blindly bashes a profession that has prevented far more medication errors than it has created.

I am a 23 year old Doctor of Pharmacy student currently employed by Walgreen’s Pharmacy as a Pharmacy Intern. I was appalled at the one-sided story aired last night on ABC’s 20/20. I am familiar with all three national chain pharmacies highlighted on the show and can say that out of the 3 Walgreen’s has -by far- the most technologically advanced system that makes error very difficult. However, humans (in any profession) DO make mistakes. In both of the extreme cases mentioned, it is very sad and unfortunate that the pharmacist failed to catch the error and that the “inexperienced 16year old technician” was portrayed as a common site in Walgreen’s pharmacies.
ABC is doing a disservice to the American public by not including all the measures taken to prevent errors- not to mention all the errors that ARE caught- and by suggesting that the “people in the white coats behind the counter” are not highly trained. I hope that ABC will, in the future, include a piece on just exactly what it takes to fill a prescription. The filling process contains multiple double-checks but patients will never understand why exactly it takes “so long” to fill their prescription if the process is not explained.

I also work in a pharmacy and agree with what has been said above. I am a nationally certified pharmacy technician. I went through an intensive training program by the company and took the national certification exam. I think that the media is taking a rare, but serious problem, making the general public think it’s an everyday occurence. I worked an 8 hour shift today and had no less than 100 people come in today and reference this newscast. The state of retail pharmacy today makes the opportunities for errors ample, and it’s due to the diligence of the pharmacy staff that these errors do not occur more often. People have come to expect that their prescriptions should be ready in 5 minutes and they should be able to wait at the drive thru. Pharmacies are not fast food restaurants. Filling a prescription takes time. In order to keep customers, the chains continue to put more pressure on their staff. I think that customers should take a more active role in their own healthcare. If you have any questions at all, ASK! That’s what we’re here for. We’d rather you ask any questions that you have than not be comfortable with the medication that you’re taking.

1. The 16 year old tech did not FILL the prescription, she entered the information. The Pharmacist filled,verified and made the error with the prescription. Stop making the public think that the tech FILLed the script.
2. Patients on Coumadin go through a long discussion with their doctors on how to take and with what medications they can and can’t take with Coumadin. There are warning on the bottles of medication and a leaflet that was attached to the bag giving information about the drug, how to take the medication, warning and side effects. Was any of that in your report? NO!!!
3. It is quite obvious that ths report was one-sided, did not report all the facts, just what you wanted to report. Just enough to make a good story, Who is interested in the bottom-line here? I think it is ABC news and their sinking ratings…..

Interesting how this report said nothing about patients taking responsibility for their health. I am a certified pharmacy technician and at the retail pharmacy where I work it is not uncommon to wait on patients who are too busy talking on their cell-phones to listen to information about their medication. You wouldn’t visit a doctor or a dentist and talk on your cell phone the entire time, how is the pharmacy any different? Yes, we do hold responsibility for patient’s lives and we try to have system in place that will minimize errors, but it is also your responsibility to take charge of your health.

I think the program that aired was a one-sided view of a few bigger issues…pharmacist shortage, increased life expectancy, increased prescription need, increased pharmacy demand, and increased number of third party problems.
Was this show an attempt to scare people into questioning and second guessing pharmacists abilities to make sound professional judgement when it comes to dispensing prescriptions? People are already aware that medication errors are preventable and occur more frequently than we would like to admit. We should be focusing on how patients can play more integral roles in their own health care, even if it means that the patient catches an oversight by the pharmacist/pharmacy.
The most important thing is preventing the error from reaching the patient and having detremental effects. Take for example, a prescription turned in for hydralazine (which lowers blood pressure)is found to be filled correctly and dispensed to the right patient, but upon being counseled the patient realizes that she was supposed to get a prescription for itching/rash called hydroxyzine and not for high blood pressure.

You call that a 4 month investigation??? Wow…that was really bad!

My apologies if a similar opinion has been posted. In my opinion, the entire story, morning and evening segments, was slanted. ABC only provided what info they wanted to. It was very misleading. The “issue” is NOT a pharmacy technician issue, but instead an entire pharmacy issue. ABC leads the viewers to believe that the technician was “filling” the prescription, a task that was at one time solely the pharmacists job. The technician was merely a part of the “filling process”. As was shown, she typed the prescription. That’s where the error occured. There were still at least 2 more opportunities to catch the error. Someone counted out the tablets, that’s a chance to catch the mistake. Next the phamacist would have verified the prescription through the computer before the prescription went to the customer. That was opportunity #2 to catch the error. Whether or not the customer was counseled was not mentioned, but that would have been opportunity #3 to catch the error. The pharmacist holds the ultimate responsibilty. That’s where the focus should have been. Regardless of the technicians age, education, or previous employment, she was functioning as was allowed by laws and regulations.
Also of interest, I would like to have seen the original hand written prescription, if it had been written by the doctor. A ten fold error such as this makes me wonder if the prescription was written as 1.0 MG. Taking into consideration the way physicians write, 1.0 MG could easily be mistaken for 10 MG, which is not an excessive dose either. If this was the case, there are guidelines for how to write prescriptions appropriately as to avoid this type of error. In this case, even the physician would be a part of the error.
Thanks for the black eye, ABC. Job well done.

I think the biggest problem is that people don’t realize that their heathcare is their responsibility also. As a patient they should know what they are getting. I know I don’t trust anyone but myself because I care about myself and my family more than someone else does. Simply put consumers need to step up and quit passing the responsibility and blame. People also don’t realize that a Pharmacy is not a McDonald’s it takes time for a script to be filled. Especailly if you want it correctly. Basically errors happen and it is everyones responsibility to catch them. Your report was very one sided and obviously meant to scare the heck out of people. (makes for good ratings) Well I think you succeeded, but you just made the hard job in the pharmacy even harder because people are easily duped into thinking that your report is the rule and not the exception.

And who is looking at the real problem? The HMOs that pay the pharmacy a dollar or two for the filling of the presciption! No wonder the chains are employing 16 year olds to fill presciptions! The HMO’s are doing the same thing to medicine and sooner or later we will have no private doctors to treat us! Just walk in clinics at WalMarts and overcrowed clinics!!!

What a coincedence this show was on tonite!! I had 3 major problems with Walgreens in the last three months. The first one was when I dropped off my presc for Morphine Sulfate 30mg IR. I didn’t pay attention to the bottle at the time and took it home. After 2 days of taking it I noticed I was feeling very lethargic, couldn’t concentrate..When I noticed they had given me Extended release instead!! No wonder I was feeling out of it..I took it back to them , no apologies,nothing!. The 2nd mistake was I dropped of my prescription for Morphine Sulfate and was told to come back in 2 hours, only to find out they had lost it!! Just yesterday I went to pick up 2 more presciptions that were supposed to be ready at 11 am, they weren’t ready, I told them I would be back in 2 hours. I got there at 4pm to find out they had not even started to fill them yet..And they left me sitting in the drive thru for an hour..Finally after getting disgusted I went inside to find out what was going on ,to have a teenager tellme “Oh theyr’e here , ready” I said, You know Ive been in my car for the last hour , what’s the problem here?” I asked to speak with the manager, someone took my name and number and I was told I would get a call from the manager today…WElll… no call nothing!!!!! Unfortounatly Walgreens is the only pharmacy that carries all the narcortics I need, so I dont have a choice but to go there…Something needs to be done !!!!!!!!!

Interesting.. I agree witht the Drive Thru scenario. People get pissed when they have to wait 20 mintues.. that LONG? Why didn’t my insurance cover it? Where is your toliet paper at? God forbid our Pharmacist actually get to pee or eat! No, I need to ask questions that only a Physician should legally be asked. I can’t count how many times I have been asked things I honestly have no right to answer!
The best patients are informed patients. Instead of taking responsibility, people want to blame others!

Ladies and gentlemen;
Welcome to the world of the
Wal-Martization of everything. Everything is reduced to the lowest common denominator and driven by corporate profits.
It looks like the pharmacuticals are making a concerted effort to flood the ABC blotter with an “attack the messenger” campaign.
Regardless of all the people who claim to go through training, the fact is that there are some places where there is little to no training!
The best thing for people to do is go to a pharmacy and ask questions about the qualifications of techs. If they are not suitable, take your business to another pharmacy that maintains higher standards…;/The only way to combat these unethical practices is to shop around and reward well-managed shops with your business.

As a pharmacist who moonlighted in retail for extra income while I was completing my pharmacy residency, AND as someone who was a Certified technician prior to pharmacy school, I feel compelled to reply.
As everyone before has stated, yes, there is a huge shortage. When you’re one person trying to oversee techs and interns, check 300 scripts in an 8 hr shift, answer the phone, talk to insurance companies about covering a new drug that someone saw on TV or some MD was persuaded by a drug rep into prescribing, running the register, comparing cough syrups in the aisle with a little old lady and counseling at the register, you’re going to make a mistake. This is not to say that they are excusable, but rather a fact of life.
Of course, there was no mention of the plethora of phone calls made everyday because of an illegible prescription or a blantantly wrong dose written by a 1st year medical intern who just doesn’t have the knowledge and experience yet to write correct prescriptions. I certainly didn’t attend college as long as I did to be an insurance agent, and the time I spent negotiating coverage could have been spent counseling patients. (And yes, I always ask if the patient has questions, even if they’ve been on the drug for years.) There was a huge deal made about the age of technicians…did you know that MANY of the people that call prescriptions into pharmacies are not medical professionals? To me, that’s no different than a young, uncertified pharmacy tech. But, I guess the network needed a scapegoat for media ratings and pharmacy hasn’t been picked on for a while.
Most of my class went into retail pharmacy because of the opportunity to talk to patients. The sad reality is that this opportunity doesn’t exist, because of insurance, prescription volume and impatient people who hover around the counter and are angry that there are 30 prescriptions ahead of theirs.
And to all those patients who complained about an error: my challenge to you is for you to know every medication you and your family members are on, and to know why you’re taking them. Why? Because MANY people don’t. So before you call in asking to refill your ‘little white pill and little blue pill,’ take the initiative to actually be involved in your own healthcare.

At the Walgreens where I work, the pharmacy techs are required to be high school graduates. They are then required to get a training license issued by my state’s board of pharmacy before they can do any filling of prescriptions or entering RX info into the computer. They go through 1 to 2 weeks of computer training and then 2 full weeks of on-the-job training with an experienced technician and pharmacy manager in one of our training stores before they can be put on the schedule in their own store. If they have not met all these requirements, they are only allowed to act as “cashiers” until we get their training license from the state board. Anyone who is filling prescriptions at my harmacy has a license from the state board–either a training license or a certification license once they pass the national certification exam. They licenses are required to be hung in the pharmacy in a “prominent location”. Look for them!!!
As far as the prescription processing goes….there are several steps.
1. The patient phone# and date of birth are to be written on the front of the RX.
2. The RX is scanned into the computer.
3. The technician types in the information from the RX into the computer.
4. PHARMACIST MUST REVIEW ALL INFORMATION THAT HAS BEEN ENTERED BY THE TECHNICIAN BEFORE A LABEL WILL GENERATE; at this time the pharmacist is also checking for proper dosing and drug interactions.
5. After pharmacist has verified all info is correct and proper, the label will print.
6. The technician must scan the bar-code on the label against the bar-code on the stock bottle of pills before the RX can be filled. If these two don’t match the technician needs to find out why (wrong drug, different manufacturer, etc). They many times will ask the pharmacist for help with this.
7. Once the Rx is filled it goes to the pharmacist.
8. PHARMACIST checks to make sure the drug in the bottle matches the image of the tablet or capsule on the computer screen. This is done by scanning the bar-coded bottle.
To process one prescription in this manner takes an average of about 10 to 15 minutes depending on how many other things are going on at the time (read the other posts and get an idea of all the interuptions we have in a day!!)
I don’t know about you, but that is pretty good considering all the work that goes into making sure we do it right the first time!!!!

I work in a pharmacy and half the time people who fill their meds don’t even know what drug they are on or what dose they take. People need to take some responsibility and stop blaming it all on Walgreens. YOU take the medication, make sure it’s right and stop waiting for us to screw up. No one is perfect, especially when you’re breathing down my neck because you don’t want to wait for us to double check your RX. People do make mistakes. That’s life, deal with it.

I would like to thank abc for making life even more difficult to work in a pharmacy. Now paranoid patients may not even take their life saving medications due to fear. As a pharmacist I know the hardships of long hours, no breaks, standing all day, being under staffed, and hostile patients. At Walgreens mistakes are tracked by a quality assurance program in which the incidents are logged in the computer and resolved by the pharmacy manager. The work of pharmacy techs are always checked by a pharmacist but its true that over worked pharmacist can’t catch every mistake a tech makes. Especially those working double shifts over 12 hours with no lunch. Furthermore, state board inspectors do go under cover to make sure pharmacy laws are being followed and give out big fines if necessary. The solution to these issues is dialog not blame. We need to work together to fix the problems instead of being law suit happy. Putting the burden of responsibility solely on the pharmacist or drug company is in itself irresponsible. Patient self education is key.

Anonymous – at Walgreen’s technicians DO fill prescriptions. They do not JUST type in the information, they type it in at the “in-window” then they fill the prescription, then they give it to the pharmacist for verification. Once the script is verified, they are then responsible for filing the script correctly as well as ringing out the customer.
And yes, Walgreen’s does hire 16 year old high school students to perform these jobs in states where pharmacy technicians do not have to be certified. In many cases, these individuals make maybe a dollar or two more than minimum wage.

Customer (in the drive thru): “I’ve been waiting for 5 minutes! Aren’t you supposed to be providing fast service? ”
Me: “This isn’t McDonald’s.”
Customer: (appalled)
——
The only comment I have is regarding mis-filled prescriptions. I work in a large volume chain pharmacy, and if anyone after watching this segment comes off with the impression that mistakes are frequent occurrences, they’re not. But when they do happen, people ignore the hundreds of factors that can possibly create a mistake on your prescription.
Ultimately, it is the responsibility of the pharmacist to ensure that your prescription was typed correctly, and filled correctly. There are millions upon millions of prescriptions filled each year, mistakes will happen, the world is not perfect.

reading some of the comments that people wrote has really outraged me… I AM A PHARMACY THECHNICIAN AND WORK FOR WALGREENS PHARMACY and i agree with anthonys comment. pharmacist and technicians both get the blame for problems with insurances like its our fault that their medication is not covered or any other bliing problem that might occur. and also what he said when they look at us in shock when we say their medication is gonna be longer that 10 minutes. the walgreens i work at happens to be a 24 hour pharmacy and one of the bussiest in the district. peole are in and out non stop… all day long. people might think its as easy as putting pills on a bottle and sticking on a label, but its so much more than that. i didnt get to watch the show but i feel its is not the young ladys fault for what happened…she shouldnt be held responsible… nobody is perfect… everyone makes mistakes.

My Question is, what is the truth behind this called “report”?, instead of mentioning “retail pharmacies” which is a title just to mention and put mistakes only for “walgreens” without having to explain why only Walgreens Pharmacies are mainly in the report?
Is it that the other big chain “CVS”, Winn-Dixie, K-mart, Walmar and all other retail pharmacies were not under the report? May I ask why? or is Walgreens the only place where errors are commited in the pharmacy? ABC should investigate more no just in Walgreens because that is not fair, although I agree with some against that retail pharmacy, but Walgreens is not the only one where errors have been done.

I have been going to my Independent Local Pharmacy in Los Angeles for over 30 years and he has NEVER made a mistake. As a matter of fact he has caught and corrected dozens of mistakes that my doctors and dentists have made while writting my prescriptions. The chains are way too busy to build that personal relationship with you and they are believe it or not more expensive than the independently owned pharmacies too.

It is NOT true that we keep pharmacists to a minimum to raise profits….we continously recruit pharmacists…there are just not enough pharmacists graduating to meet the DEMANDS of the growing population. Yes, the pharmacists do work long hours, with no breaks…but they do that for YOU. To make sure you can get your medication when YOU need it. We pay so much money in overtime to these pharmacists (which they deserve and most companies do not pay overtime!!), when the ideal solution is to have more pharmacists on hand (goes back to not enough pharmacists period to go around). If it were up to me (a mgr) I would just keep the pharmacy open 9-5. Make the patients leave work early accomodate THEIR schedule to make sure they get their medication on a timely basis. Heaven forbid you have to pick one up after going to an urgent care in the middle of the night….Pharmacists work these hours because the DEMAND by the people is there for them, they want to make sure you get them when you need them. Believe me, no amount of pay can truly pay a pharmacist enough for all they do for the public. So think twice before you run out of medication, think twice before you find out your child is ill at 8pm and you take them to an urgent care and need that antibiotic/pain reliever at 10pm, think twice before you go to that counter and ask about a over the counter medication to take…who knows, because of irresponsible one sided journalism, they may decide to cut the hours of the pharmacy…then where will you be??? Who will you call after hours when you have a reaction to something??? Who will be responsible then? I appreciate my pharmacy staff and know how difficult a job they do every minute of the day, with very little thanks from the patients they serve…I actually think they should mandate 24hr turn around on all refill prescriptions…only prescriptions of triage nature should be filled immediately…maybe then people will be more responsible for their medications instead of waiting until they have taken the last pill to get a refill and scream “but I am going on a cruise this afternoon…what do you mean I can’t get this NOW??

It’s not that pharmacies don’t hire more pharmacists because they want to save money, they don’t hire more because there aren’t any to hire. It isn’t their fault there are 70,000 fewer pharmacists than there ought to be.

Ok, enough is enough, I work for Walgreens. You people need to think, we operate 5,500 stores, and an average store fills between 100 – 150 scripts a day. Mistakes happen, we are only human, and even the best trained human can make a mistake, can any of you who posted a comment previous to me say you have honestly never made a mistake? I highly doubt it.
Regardless what language our pharmacists speak they are highly trained, along with out pharmacy techs that undergo 40 hours of training sitting in front of a computer! learning regulations and procedures. Not to mention the weeks of training we undergo in the actualy phamacy itself with the pharmacist literally breathing down our necks the whole time. I find it sad and pathetic ABC would go to such lengths to rip apart an industry in which the American population relies on so much just to live! How many lives has Walgreens saved with its medication? How many children were able to go to school last week becasue of the antibiodics we gave them for their cold? How many cancer patients are able to live somewhat comfortably from our medications?

I just hope that pharmacists are not discouraged by this report…as Carl stated…there is a true shortage of pharmacists all across the country. This will not just effect the larger chains but on down to the “mom and pops”…and if there is a mass exodus of patients to the “mom and pops”…guess what….they will get busier…not have the staff either…not have any where near the technology…and a mistake will happen…People need to wake up, companies aren’t asking pharmacists to pump out more prescriptions a day…the public is…and its true, if there is something wrong with the script that they have to call the doctor/insurance co etc, that patient wants us to do it. They don’t care that there are other people ahead and behind them. Just the same as the person whom has no problems wants theirs filled immediately, however, if the time comes that the staff needs to take extra time for them, heck yeah they want you to take the time and figure everything out…which is the patients responsibilty (calling the doctor, calling the insurance company). All we get is compliants that it takes too long..takes too long..what do you expect?

I am a pharmacist and I agree with Anthony 100%. It would have been nice for 20/20 to at least shed light on the fact that a Pharmacist is a human being and work in a very stressful environment. The phones are ringing, we are trying to concentrate on each prescription, customers have questions, and we are trying to fill presecriptions for everyone. So please be patient and do not rush me just so you can get the prescription quickly or you need your question answered right now or you hate waiting on the phone for me to get to you. Trying to rush me means you are demanding me to spend less time focusing on your prescription. BE PATIENT! Give us time to do our job!

California law only allowes pharmacist ration is 1 to 1. Although, there are more than one techs work on the same shift bot only one can perform tech’s task if there is one pharmacist. As a pharmacist, i have to work 10 hours straight without break. Technically I am allowed a break but due to the work load and the demands of the patients I normally work through my break just ot make them happy and cut down the wait time.. Pharmacists work really hard but get the least respect.

As a graduating pharmacy student this year, I have to say that I find this subject to be very important, but also VERY biased. While I think we all know that corporate America is, in the end, all-consumed with making the almighty dollar, but why cast a devastating shadow upon a profession that has traditionally been known as one of the most trusted professions. What other medical profession GIVES health advice away for free without charging? A doctor will not even see you without charging you or your insurance company, but in our pharmacies, patients who are not even patrons can come up and ask us questions and we put a smile on our face and answer the question. WHY? Because its for the good of the PATIENT. I think that the real problem is not blaming the practice of pharmacy but rather blaming corporate America for these mistakes.
And since we’re pointing fingers of blame. Why not do a special on the doctor who writes Coumadin 10mg 1 QID (four times a day) which would most likely make the patient bleed to death? Its times like those you will be glad pharmacy is there. Point being, who doesnt make mistakes?

Just a comment on strokes. There are 2 types of strokes that can occur: ischemic (clot) or hemorrhagic (bleeding). Even though 20/20 didn’t mention what type of stroke this woman suffered from the incorrect Coumadin dose we cannot assume that it was from a bleed, there should have been other symptoms. Great medical back-up. 20/20 went on to report that she died because her chemo was with-held because of the stroke.
My condolences go out to this family. No one came out ahead in this story.
Heres a solution:
For patients who don’t want to wait at the pharmacy, how about having your physician e-prescribe your rxs? They will be legible: Medication, name & address &dob of patient, and prescriber’s name.
Next we can schedule appointments.
Get paid for consultations. Provide Medication Therapy Management aka MTM services.
The best bottom line is SAFETY.

After reading many of the comments posted about this story I find myself amazed that people can believe anything that they hear. No one other than people who actually work in a pharmacy have any idea what we go through.
Its easy for ABC or any member of the media to spin this story and make it seem as though “the big bad chain pharmacy” is at fault and don’t get me wrong in some instances that may be the case but we need to look at the entire healthcare system as a whole. You notice that this story didn’t once recognize have often pharmacist catch possibly fatal errors that are often written by doctors. Just try reading one the prescriptions your doctor gives you after your next appointment.
The story made it seems as though we just take anyone in off the streets to come and work in our pharmacies but again ABC seemed to neglect the fact that each technichian must be registered within the state her or she is working in. The story made pharmacies seem as though we are a minute part of the healthacre system. Patients don’t recieve “Oh Well” reactions if a mistake is made. There are certain procedures that need to be followed if a medication error is made and we follow them accordingly. My question to many is when does personal responsibility come in? As a society we are often looking for someone to blame but no one wants to take the responsibilty including the patient. This story didn’t even once look into all of the safegards each pharmacy puts into place to prevent erros. As a pharmacist I find that this story to be highly offensive.

Target Pharmacies are the best, hands down. They are very professional, they always talk to me about my meds, and they get me in and out very fast. They know me and my family personally and no matter how busy they are, they Always take the time to talk to me about my meds!!! I am not just a number to them, I am a person.

What could prevent alot of errors is to require typed prescriptions or electronic prescriptions that would then be legible. I know i can barely read my doctors hand writing. there’s the old joke of not being able to read a persons signature as having a doctors signature. not to funny when you think about the amount of errors it may cause.
Then if the pharmacy tech follows procedure and calls the doctor to clarify what was written, the patient becames irate because it wasnt filled on time.
everyone has blame to share in this. The doctors for assuming there in-a-rush handwriting can be read. the RX techs and pharmacists for taking shortcuts. and not just the young ones. laziness and irritable comes in all ages, and the patient for not becoming more informed on what they’re putting in there body.
remember a few months ago how the FDA gave everybody a wake up call as to following the dosages of over the counter drugs or suffer future consequences. Why? Because people abused what was there, took it for granted and have nobody to blame. Read your perscription labels. that should tell you you got the wrong script.
Talk to your doctor about what they’re perscribing you and what dosage. Dont let him/her off the hook so eaily, just so they can move on to the next patient. Talk to your rx tech when their typing it in. be patient. they have insurance comapanies, doctors, clinics, and other patients to handle.

I noticed a comment which stated that a person should have to work as a technician for at least 1 year prior to becoming a registered pharmacist. I am a pharmacy student in PA. It is a 6 YEAR program to be a pharmacist. I need at LEAST 750 intern hours at a pharmacy IN ADDITION to 1 YEAR of clerkships (which is my last year of schooling). Once I graduate, I am still NOT a registered pharmacist. I have to take TWO tests – one on pharmacy law and the other on ALL of the drugs.
Additionally, did anyone ever wonder about the other end of pharmacy? You know, the doctors who phone in the prescriptions…oh wait…doctors don’t always call them in..do they?! No! They can have any moron who works in the office (a secretary) who may have as much schooling as the pharmacy technicians that everyone is complaining about. You can’t always put the blame on the pharmacy. There is a lot more which goes on than you know!

Mistakes do happen, whether made by an inexperienced teenage pharmacy tech or a 50 year old experienced surgeon (that’s why all those health professionals have malpractice insurance). Especially in this case, age is almost irrelevant. Counting pills and filling them into bottles do not take a 35 year old and 3 years of experience. Exploiting the age in this case by ABC is disappointing. The only issue with age in this “news” is: it is surprising to me that anyone under the age of 21 cannot serve alcohol but yet, they can have easy access to powerful medications which can have a much higher risk of addiction and/or serious health consequences, if abused, and NOT that she made the mistake because she was young.
Responsibilities of pharmacy techs are limited, that’s why they are not paid $100K/yr. It is ultimately the pharmacist’s responsibility to ensure mistakes are kept to the minimum.
In response to a comment posted earlier about pharmacists are not paid for each consult they made, I have to say that attitude is surprising, especially coming from someone that is possibly a future pharmacist. You ARE paid to do it. It is part of your duties as a pharmacist. That comment is almost to say that a doctor provides exam, makes diagnosis and provides treatment but if a patient have questions, it is ok for him/her not to answer that question because “they are not paid to do so”.
I also agree with a lot of the earlier postings about how big corporate pharmacies are putting profits in front of their employees’ wellbeing, which in turn affects patient care. I was surprised to find out that my friend, a pharmacist, sometimes doesn’t even have a lunch break. I thought it is government regulations that allow employees to have at least 1/2 hour lunch break after 4 hours of continuous work?
Pharmacies are often understaffed and flooded with patients with unrealistic expectations on how long it takes to fill their prescriptions. Middle management are sometimes more inclined to keep upper management happy than pharmacists and techs.
In order improve the situation, lower the number of mistakes, it is everyone’s responsibilities. Big companies like Walgreens, CVS, Target (I have been using Target Pharmacy for a while and they are not really much better), etc. has to take steps to ensure the wellbeing for their employees. Pharmacists, techs and other staff needs to take their responsibilities more seriously and yes, patients like you and me are also part of it. Write down the prescription information on another piece of paper before handing it to the pharmacy staff and double check the label(s) and maybe even the pills to make sure you get the right one. Because ultimately it is your health that is on the line. If you have any questions or doubt, forget about signing to waive consultation. You can always ask to talk to the pharmacist and they cannot say no.

I have been a pharmacy technician for 11 years. When I first started, I was 16 and trained on the job. Looking back, I realize a child should not have been hired for that type of responsibility. I now train individuals in an intensive 9 month program to enter the pharmacy world as a certified pharmacy. It is time that certified technicians are recognized for the skills and knowledge they possess and that the money they should be paid is better than killing an innocent person.

I sent my husband to Walgreens to fill a prescription for me tonight. When he brought it home he gave it to me, and after seeing the show the other night I decided to look it up…. I had this pill before, and I didn’t remember it looking like what I had in front of me. Well I sent my husband to get DIFLUCAN 100MG TABLETS (which is only ONE pill) which is used to treat certain fungal infections…. what he came home with was DILTIAZEM XR 180MG 30 CAPSULES… this is used for people who have High blood pressure… there is a BIG difference there! When we called, the store manager said, oh I dont know how this happened, we hardly ever make mistakes. My husband took the meds back up there, and pointed out to them, that in the past I have suffered from low blood pressure, and this medication was to lower high blood pressure… it also has some very serious side effects! Not only did they give me the wrong meds, and I am very thankful for seeing the show the other night, or I may not have checked because you just expect them to be giving you the right thig (I will be checking from now on) but they acted like it was just one mistake… and it was no big deal. When someone has died, from the same mistake that your company has just recently made it IS a big deal! And should be looked at better. All scripts should be double checked to avoid this problem, people are human, and we all make mistakes, but having things checked twice can avoid this!

Walgreens is the BEST! They serve our American people for more than 100 years! They are very professional, caring and friendly. They have the most 24 hours and drive-thru pharmacies in the country, so if you are sick in the middle of the night, you know where you can go. No matter how busy they are, they are always there for me to ask questions. Keep up the great work, Walgreens.

Please continue to investigate chain store pharmacy services. Pharmacists have to work 12 hours a shift with no breaks and no lunch. They work with minimal staff and have tremedous responsibilities. You might start in Massachussets as they are one of the worst states. Don’t blame the technicians or the pharmacist, but the state laws and the chain store policies.

I’m a nationally certified CPhT(Certified Pharmacy Technician). I am also an aspiring pharmacist. (30 yrs old, for the record.) The retail chain I work for requires pharmacy employees to be 18 years of age or older. Period. We are horribly understaffed for the volume of business that comes through our doors, both in regards to Pharmacists and techs. Most pharmacists in the district refuse to work there because it’s so busy. Regardless of staffing, the responsibility falls on the pharmacist on duty when a prescription is dispensed. EVERY script has to be verified by a pharmacist before it can be bagged and given to a patient. It doesn’t matter who input the script or who counted the pills. The pharmacist has to verify that the prescription was transcribed correctly, DEA# is valid, dosing is reasonable, check drug interactions, open the vial and visually verify the contents against the contents of the stock bottle, etc. Mistakes should NOT leave the pharmacy. People are human and mistakes are possible, but there is always an accountability. There is really no excuse why that script should have gotten past the pharmacist.

Look at the procedure. one tech may put in the rx but someone else may fill it. we dont question a 10 mg dosage of warfarin . to fix the doctor handwriting, why dont they type the script. its not the tech’s fault. if we cant read it the pharmacist and tech work together and call the doc. this was a one sided report.

Did anyone read the very first post by Anthony?
Great description of how much pharmacists have to deal with. The root of the problem lies in health insurance becoming a beauracratic disaster. Pharmacists are now spending more time on the phone trying to sort out plans than anything else, and it isnt getting any better.
We are leaving it up to pharmacists to be the go-between patients and their healthcare insurance, relaying co pay increases to the client (and getting an argument mostof the time), generic vs. name brand decisions, and many other variables that cant simply be taken care of in a few minutes.
There are always 2 sides to a story, I am disappointed only the few mistakes were shown, and not the nightmare caused by problems outside the realm of what pharmacists should be taking care of.
I agree, and Im not going to say I am all that happy about someone barely trained doing what they do. But until the SYSTEM is changed, you cat blame the people who are forced to adhere to it.

lol…one more note…ummm, did personal responsibility get lost somewhere? If I am taking a medication, I make sure when I receive the medication, I check to see it is what it is supposed to be.
I check the dosage against what the doc told me.
I wouldnt just accept food somewhere and eat it if I didnt know what it is…
America is getting lazier and lazier. We rely on others to do the thinking for us.

My husband has a Pharm D, works retail and also for his family store pharmacy (barely hanging on). He often complains that the retail store tries to have too many pharmacy techs per pharmacy and that the techs they hire are inexperienced (once trained they leave) and that he (pharmacists)never gets a break (not required by law in Fl). The chains have minimum skeleton staff scheduled and when someone calls in it is horrible. At his family store, the techs are well trained, know all customers by name and know their patient’s medications. Also added to the list to investigate are the insurance companies and drug companies who set the price paid to the pharmacy. There is not enough of a profit to pay for full staff. The front stock makes most of the profit. If you want to find where the profits are, look to the companies who make the drugs, sell at a high price. The insurance companies pay below cost of the drug qand give you pennies per perscription: therefore, you must sell a lot of RX.
PS There will never be a honest change in their way of doing business (of the large drug companies) because they can buy anyone and make billions and pay just a small fine when they are actually fined for wrong doing. It is worth the risk. It is always about following the money trail.
For those who want good service and comparative prices: Try a family local owned drug store. Oh, I forgot, it’s all about the money!

ABC is bias for reporting only one side of the story. Did they forget to mention that pharmacy technicians had formal education and training before becoming licensed? Did they forget to mention that doctors have horrible handwriting and mistakes can happen? Did they forget to mention that people these days are in such a rush that they don’t communicate with their doctors about what medication they are taking and what dose they are on? I feel horrible that the lady had a severe adverse effect to the medication error but could she have prevented it if she knew the dose of her own medication? Pharmacist and technicians are humans and humans make mistakes … like walgrens said a “few mistakes” in millions of prescriptions we fill. If anything should be learned from this, then people should be more active in their own health outcomes and know exactly what they are taking, name of drug, dose, route, frequency, and indication.

While the stories that ABC highlighted are tragic and it is certainly true that medication errors occur in retail pharmacies, the manner in which this issue was covered in this report is absurd. Errors are made in every profession in every industry. Roofers make leaky roofs, lawyers inadequately defend clients, reporters report false information, and healthcare professionals make medical errors. Healthcare is specifically burdened because the errors made during the course of one’s work often result in significant adverse events for the patient. However, in such cases the goal should not be to blame those committing the errors, as this report does quite clearly, but to bring their errors to light and determine where they, or the system they work in, failed. A culture based in blaming will only serve to further incentivize those who make errors to cover them up. Humans will always make errors, even in healthcare. Increases in workload, stress, and role burden will only further serve to increase error rates. However, changing the systems in which our healthcare professionals work can serve to significantly minimize the errors that are made. Instead of blaming the individual, it would serve everyone better to evaluate the work systems and change them so that the work environment is “wired” for patient safety, so to speak. The one thing that the report got right was that the onus is on those in healthcare to remedy the current situation. I will freely admit that too many medication errors are made in the United States and the costs of such errors place an added burden on the healthcare system. A story such as this does nothing to aid in developing a solution to reduce medication errors. It is nothing more than an inflammatory, fear-inspiring report on an issue that is already well known among many Americans, both in and outside of the healthcare industry. I fail to see the purpose of such a report as it offers a sincerely biased opinion and does not offer nor promote any actionable solution.

So, my understanding of what the majority of people want is this, they want people who know everything to work in a pharmacy and have a pharmacist check every single little detail for himself. Am I correct? Well, if this is the case then there are many things you have to do. All pharmacies must share information about who bought what drug. Every drug bought by a customer must then be listed under that customer.
Let’s also just forget that drugs and food interact with each other too and cause deadly combinations sometimes and the fact that sharing patient confidential information with other places violates laws. And the fact that new drugs are being brought to the market all the time and that not everyone can remember all the interactions between the top 200 drugs used in the US.
We’d all basically have to wait about 5 hours for a prescription then and most people these days are too impatient to wait even 5 minutes.

1) If doctors wrote more legibly, there would be less of an issue. Who says the pharmacy staff did anything wrong, maybe the doctor wrote it incorrectly
2) Half of the people complaining about medication errors and problems in their pharmacies are probably the people saying “all you have to do is slap a label on it”. But when someone dies, you better believe it’s our fault that we only slapped that label on it.
3) I am extremely disappointed with ABC’s one-sided report. Disgusting. And I’m even more disgusted with the public for believing it and not trying to get more information before jumping to conclusions- the media is NOT always right.
4) Pharmacy technicians do the grunt work in the pharmacy. They ring out prescriptions, enter them into the computer and fill the bottles. It is the pharmacists responsibility to check and make sure the medication is correct. Stop freaking out, the technicians are not filling without having a pharmacist check it after. They are allowed to handle the medications, just like a 40 year old person could.

As a pharmacy student, I just would like to say to all those people who are ragging on the retail pharmacy hiring high school workers to stop and think for a moment if they would be willing to pay more for their medications. Because I’m sure if you, as the the customer, said “I’ll be willing to pay more for my medications if you only hire pharmacists to work behind the counter.” And you stuck to your word, then the big retail chains may be less apt to hire high schoolers. Sadly the truth is that as the consumer you demand the lowest cost possible which in turn forces the pharmacy to cut costs whereever possible, including overhead.

I cannot believe how little people know and understand about a pharmacist’s job. Just about everyone has gotten a prescription filled at one time or another. I am a pharmacy student and to clear up any misunderstandings…. #1 It is now required that all pharmacists complete the PharmD (Doctorate of Pharmacy) degree, #2 Pharmacy students do rotations before graduating (just like med school students), #3 Pharmacists catch MANY mistakes made by doctors before the medication even reaches your hands. #4 All prescriptions ARE checked by the pharmacist prior to dispensing. Like others said, it was a mistake by the young technician (most likely due to poor handwriting of the doctor) and was not caught by the pharmacist
People should realize that pharmacies do not make up the cost of your copays (if you have insurance). If you think the price is too high, take it up with your insurance company.
Just out of curiosity, did you know that over 100,000 deaths occur each year in hospitals due to PREVENTABLE mistakes made by doctors and nurses???

I would like to clear some things up At CVS you must be 18 and have a HSD. I feel you are giving pharm. techs a bad name. My mom is one at CVS and she dose a stressful job for little pay but yet does a good job. It dose not take a Pharm.D to fill prescriptions.

I’ve been a pharmacy tech for 18 years, most of them in Washington state. I began working just out of high school. I was supervised and trained on the job by the pharmacists on staff. In Washington, technicians are licensed: required to complete so many hours of training in different aspects of pharmacy and take a test before a license is granted. Not all states have stringent requirements for techs, BUT the pharmacist is the ultimate last check and authority for okaying the finished prescription before it is dispensed to the patient. Period. And yes, there are pharmacist shortages which results in needing more pharmacy techs. The corporate giants have pushed this trend, preferring to pay cheaper wages to techs than hiring the much higher paid pharmacists. At the same time, many of them also cut back tech hours in order to save money. What do you get then? Overworked staff trying to do the job of more people than there are present, because of corporate greed. Plain and simple. The fault of all this lies with the corporations, but also with the insurance companies, who have reduced dispensing fees to laughable figures. I freely admit that I have made mistakes which have, thankfully, been caught by my supervisor. I do not think that I am perfect in any way, despite my years of experience.

OK, ABC…you want to know what the REAL problem is with medication errors?
1. It’s not age. Let’s face it, there are PLENTY of 40 yr olds out there that are just as immature as a 16 yr old. Just as important, there are MANY 16 yr olds that are more mature than 40 yr olds.
2. Regardless of age, and no matter what previous jobs a person may have had, there has to be proper TRAINING. I’m a pharmacy technician and I used to work for a smaller home-town chain here in Minnesota, and now I work for CVS. Comparatively, I have received more training already at CVS in the three months I have been with them, than the 1 year I was with my previous pharmacy. It’s all about maturity level of the individual and the training given to them by the company.
3. Doctors NEED to write legibly. Period.
4. We need to STOP being a fast-food nation. Whomever invented the drive-thru pharmacy (sorry, this is just my opinion) wasn’t thinking ahead as to what might go wrong with their idea. People assume that because they can get their burgers in 5 minutes, that they should be able to go through a pharmacy drive-thru and get the same treatment in the same amount of time with drugs that can potentially make you sick or kill you. Customers, make use of your time, drop off your prescription before you do your 5 other errands, and make your pick-up the last thing on your to-do list.
5. Customers, PLEASE know what insurance you have and always carry your card with you. Open those packets you get in the mail from your insurance company. Please remember that there are HUNDREDS if not THOUSANDS of different insurance companies out there, and even if your insurance is Medica, they may have their prescription coverage through another company, like Express Scripts. KNOW YOUR HEALTH INFO, PLEASE don’t make us do your work for you…that is why mistakes are often made, because our pharmacists are on the phone for HOURS trying to figure out why your card from 1992 won’t go through.
6. ALWAYS check your bottles before you take your meds. People are human! Even with the bare minimum (one tech and one pharmacist) two people can miss a mistake, and yes, even two people can not realize that your doctor screwed up your prescription in the first place (always check with your doc that its the right med and dose they are giving you).
All of that said (sorry for my rant here, but I am a well-trained tech who is well over 16 and damn good at my job), even though I did not get the chance to see this report, it makes me sad to see that our media is taking a small number of unfortunate events and turning it into scare tactics.
People, please. I’ve been on both sides of the counter (patient and technician) and I can tell you…if I had been better informed as a patient as to how things worked in a pharmacy, I would have had much more respect for those working there, and been in better charge of my healthcare concerns before I even decided to take a job as a technician.
That respect, in itself, helps those of us in retail pharmacy to do our jobs effeciently and precisely, and to help serve you better with less mistakes.

ABC,
What the news cast failed to portray were all of the mistakes that pharamcists did, in fact, prevent. I work in a hospital setting where I work in collaboration with a multi-disciplinary health-care team. We’re talking physicians, nurses, dieticians, social workers, physical therapists…all with suggestions for patient care. As a pharamcist on that team I have prevented countless overdoses, underdoses, adverse reactions, allergic reactions, etc, and have talked to nearly all of my patients. We discuss new medications and discuss how they take their medications at home. And when mistakes do happen, we report them, and, as part of a member of the Adverse Drug Event Committee, we problem-solve on how to prevent them in the future. So please, when presenting the supposed terrible things that pharamcists do, please represent the positive side of things. Pharmacists are the most accessible health-care professionals and the most educated about medications. In fact some reports will tell you that they are one of the most trusted professionals.

Not all Walgreens are this irresponsible. I have worked front end at the same Walgreens for 3 years, and every one of our Pharmacy Techs and Pharmacists are over the age of 21. Corporate policy states that you have to be 18 before you can even work in the Pharmacy. All stores should have to follow company policy. In cases like this, we need to look at the individual stores and not the company as a whole. There are many qualified and talented Pharmacists and Technicians working for Walgreens, and you should not be punishing them for following the rules.

PharmD resident? What does that mean? Do you learn how to count pills in a hospital?
The public is miseducated as to what the role of the pharmacist is expanding to in our generation. This newscast is just another example to show the public that a pharmacist (or “16-year old” tech, in this case) is merely a tool for counting pills and dispensing medications in the fastest and most efficient way possible. I agree that age should have nothing to do with competence level. I know plenty of incompetent older people.
As I read through these posts, it made me angry as to how uneducated most of these people sounded as to what a pharmacist does and what the supposed laws should or shouldn’t be. When I tell people, even my family members, that I will be completing a pharmacy residency next year, most of them have no idea what I’m actuallty talking about. Also, I have worked in retail in two different chain stores for the past 8 years and just because a pharmacy is a chain, doesn’t make it a bad pharmacy. Your staff is an incredibly huge part of making the place run, in addition to the corporation giving you enough pharmacist hours to staff appropriately. Perhaps the biggest problem in this Walgreen’s is the lack of staff altogether, which makes mistakes a lot easier to come by.
I wish ABC would do a story on the difference that a pharmacist can make in hospitals, nursing homes, and retail locations. Pharmacists are constantly involved in providing better patient care and correcting mistakes made by other parts of the patient care team.

PharmD resident? How can a pharmD candidate not know what a resident is?
A resident is a pharmD graduate that pursues their interest in a more clinical setting. They are pharmacists, just like you will be one day.

I am a licensed pharmacy technician for the state of California. I have been so since 1999. I am now a pharmacy technician program director for a vocational school. I think the story that aired on Friday was extremely biased.
In California a ptech must attend 720 hours of an accredited school, have a high school diploma, be over the age of 18, and submit to a background and drug test prior to employment prior to even being able to handle medication.
Dispensing medication is an extremely important job that must be done with a precise knowledge and practice. I take my professional seriously and it was unfair and inadequate presentation of the pharmacy technician.

I have worked as a pharmacy tech since I was 16 years old, I am now 27 and Lead Tech for a major chain. I think all pharmacy techs deserve an apology for the broadcast. I understand that there are misfills and that is very unfortunate but every prescription should be checked by the Pharmacist before ever leaving the pharmacy. So the fault really lies on the Pharmacist on duty not the Tech. If a mistake is made the Pharmacist should have it corrected before it ever leaves the pharmacy. It is very unfair to single out technicians. sincerly, very upset in dayton ohio

Anthony and many others are correct; ABC is completely missing the point. Pharmacy staff are generally quite competent, but the consumers have unrealistic expectations. They do not grasp the sheer complexity of the job behind the counter, they effectively see pharmacy as a “McDonalds for Drugs” and they treat it as such.
There are many different parties at play here: doctors writing the prescriptions, insurance companies being billed for the prescriptions, corporate structures constantly messing with different drug manufacturers and more. Each of these things has the possibility for error, and while the mistake may be the doctor’s, or the insurance company’s, or whoever else, it is the pharmacy that gets the blame.
If you want to eliminate mistakes from the pharmacy, then don’t expect to get your 14 prescriptions in less than 25 minutes! That is completely ridiculous, and you should feel stupid for expecting it. This is your life after all, maybe you should make sure that the pharmacy staff has the time required to appropriately double and quadruple check your prescriptions.

I have been reading most of the comments on this page. I have been hearing both sides of the story (even though the show only showed once side). I noticed, a lot of people try to defend the pharmacist, and many try to blame them. With the situation with the Warfarin 1mg which was given 10mg, I haven’t seen a single mention of the doctor. How do we know that the doctor’s handwriting wasn’t horrible, which made it seemed like a 0 after the 1? Everyday, while at the pharmacy, about 1 out of every 4 prescriptions are not readible. We have people that come to the pharmacy for unrelated items as well; one lady was yelling at me because the soap was not on sale. In situations of errors, everyone is at fault; the pharmacy, the customer, the doctor, and the insurance company. While I agree the pharmacy needs to be more staffed, I think it is ridiculous to mention that technicians fill prescriptions. Of course they do. They fill the VIALS, but every vialis checked by the pharmacist, and the vial does not leave the verification are unless the pharmacist checked it. There isn’t enough time or money to have only pharmacists fill the vials. Customers need to be more responsible for their own medicine, and not wait until Friday night to ask for us to fax the doctor when they are closed on weekends. Some customers just expect the pharmacy to do all of their work. I’ve had customers drop off prescriptions and I quoted them 10 minutes (even though they waited HOURS at the doctor’s offices), and they tell me, why 10mins, it’s already in a box (for ex. eye drops, or creams). And why is insurance companies not paying for medicines, and asking for prior authorizations (and take up to a week to approve)? Why would they need a prior authorization when the doctor already authrorized it by writing the prescription themself??? Every side needs to take blame, and be responsible. Everyone just wants to find a scapegoat, and this needs to change.

John,
That was sarcasm…obviously if I am doing a residency next year, I know what one is.

As a registered Pharmacy Tecnician and a licensed Pilot, the “profit uber allis” mentality of the major drug store Chains and drug industry in general has created a situation similar to that faced by the nation’s Air Traffic Controllers. Tremendous pressure and responsiblity without commensurate reward.

I was absolutely appalled at the editorial by ABC. Sure what they were reporting on was a mistake and a newscast nonetheless. Unfortunetly that newscast was an issue that was negative toward the retail pharmacy setting. It’s going to be negative and the only reason the media used the sotry is because it would turn an eye of the consumer/professional/observer to it.
I literally have 12 days left of school until I graduate, and I am going to be going into the retail setting. A pharmacist in those setting is not meant to lick,stick,count,pour. The behind the scenes work that a pharmacist does that goes unnoticed especially by an article such as this needs to be reported on. I would challenge ABC to follow up and interview some retail pharmacists anonymously and see exactly what they do and how mistreated they are.
I absolutely love talking with patients which in one reason as to why I am going into retail pharmacy. I hate drive through windows, retail pharmacies are not fast food chains and you will not recieve your medication faster so stop ringing the bell.

I happened to have GMA on while getting ready for my job as a pharmacy tech at CVS.
Our pharmacy is very conscientious about our service to customers and I was appalled at the scare tactics used in this report. There is no way a high school student could dispense a prescription at our pharmacy. In my state, you have to be 18, take the approved training and pass a state exam to be a pharmacy technician.
We constantly have checks on our procedures and only qualified technicians can fill prescriptions which are in turn checked by the pharmacist. If the customer in the report received an erroneous RX, then the blame lies solely on the pharmacist who checked it. At our company, with cutbacks increasing, pharmacists are becoming more and more scarce and trying to fill the enormous volume of scripts is becoming a losing battle. The pharmacist is at risk of losing their license if errors are made, while at the same time dealing with customers who want their prescriptions filled IMMEDIATELY. In our “fast food society”, everyone wants it NOW and prescriptions are NOT fast food — Do u want it RIGHT or do u want it FAST?? Next time you get a prescription at a pharmacy, think about it. There are so many variables involved – did the dr. sign the rx, is the med available, are the instructions legible, is there a problem with insurance coverage,are there drug interactions, the list goes on and on. You’d be surprised how many people call to ask US what their meds are prescribed for, or IF it’s time for a refill. We are not your doctor. The public needs to be proactive and not be unduly alarmed by these types of stories. Typical media hype.

How does pharmacy chains like Walgreens expect pharmacy technicians that have graduated from high school to support their families on $8.00 hr? They obviously attract high school student due to very, extremely poor, poor living wages, who else can live on that and not have to still live with your parents? I’ve been with Walgreens for 10 years and get a 10 cent raise every year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I currently work as a Pharmacy Tech for another pharmacy and am in Pharmacy School. Why doesn’t ABC do a special on how hard pharmacists and techs have to work in retail and how much crap they have put with their patients since patients don’t realize that this is not a fast food joint as previous people said. When pharmacies say, give us time to fill, it really means GIVE US TIME so we can fully check and make sure your prescription is dosed correctly. In every profession people make errors, this doesn’t make this error ok because its not but it also doesn’t mean you do a special report on it bashing the profession. Without Pharmacies, where are you going to get you’re medications, from whom are you going to get medication advice since doctors aren’t always free. Learn to appreciate what these people go through before you sit here and say “oh I will never go to Walgreens again”. Pharmacists and techs always ask do you have any questions? If you do then SPEAK UP then. That’s what they’re for, to COUNSEL you and make sure you fully understand what you’re taking=patient care. Did you know there’s a huge shortage of Pharmacists? Did you know these people go through an intense load during Pharmacy School? Check your facts before you speak.

As a pharmacist who holds a doctoral degree (yes, many pharmacists, and all those who graduated after 2005 hold doctoral degrees), let me say a couple of things.
1. THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH PHARMACISTS TO GO AROUND – There will be a shortage til about 2025 or even later.
2. Therefore, we must have technicians to ASSIST us
3. THE PHARMACIST IS ULTIMATELY RESPONSIBLE, NO BLAME SHOULD BE PLACED ON THE TECHNICIAN
4. Yes, we sometimes need extra help, so we get the manager or photo clerk to help RING UP PRESCRIPTIONS – at no time, is a photo clerk allowed to count pills and put them into a bottle unless he/she is also a certified technician
5. It is unreasonalbe to think that a pharmacist should work the “in window” where you drop off prescriptions and type them in – at the doctor’s office, who comes in to check your heart rate, blood pressure, temperature, and obtain various other information (ie. chief complaint, recent medical history, symptoms…)? Its a nurse or even a medical assistant. I have colleagues who employ medical assistants who do this very thing and have high school diplomas/GED’s, but have earned their certificate degree for medical assistant.
6. Your average Walgreens/CVS/Rite Aid… fills about 250 to 300 prescriptions per day. Do you know how many SERIOUS errors occur each week at said pharmacies? ZERO. I define serious as a patient receiving the wrong drug, wrong dose, or wrong directions such that a harmful outcome occurs.
7. Often, “mom and pop” independent pharmacies have out dated technology. For example, I spent 8 weeks while in pharmacy school at a respected independent pharmacy. The computer software used did not have automatic drug interaction and health condition checking! Many of the independent pharmacies don’t have the extra money to continually invest in technology – DO NOT ASSUME THAT THEY HAVE A LOWER ERROR RATE, ERRORS ARE CONSISTENT AMONG ALL RETAIL PHARMACIES
8. We as pharmacists are the drug experts and we understand the patient’s knowledge is limited.
9. Even if you don’t know what to aks about, say this to the pharmacist – IS THERE ANYTHING IMPORTANT I SHOULD KNOW REGARDING THIS MEDICATION? Or try, COULD YOU PLEASE LOOK AT ALL MY MEDICATIONS AND SEE IF THERE ARE ANY INTERACTIONS OR CONCERNS.
10. Find one pharmacy you like and stick with it, using coupons for transferring prescriptions only hurts your overall care
11. Don’t use the drive through, get off your ass, go inside and look your pharmacist in the eye and ask him/her some questions.
12. Pharmacists are glad to answer questions, but be to the point. Sometimes, we don’t have time for stories that are long preludes to your actual question. Get to the point, be direct, and you’ll get an honest answer.
13. Do not yell, rush, or otherwise harass the pharmacy staff – treat them as you would like to be treated. If they don’t treat you kindly in return, go to a different pharmacy.
14. YOUR DOCTOR MAKES MISTAKES TOO – I’ve lost track over the years for dispensing medications EXACTLY as it was written and by all accounts, the precriptions were medically correct and appropriate. However, they were nonetheless wrong (dose was changed incorrectly, or, dose wasn’t changed as it was supposed to. wrong quantity or refills written by doctor, and even the wrong medicine is written)
15. DON’T EVER LEAVE YOUR DOCTOR’S OFFICE WITHOUT KNOWING WHAT YOUR PRESCRIPTIONS ARE FOR
16. KNOW THE NAMES OF THE MEDICATIONS YOU’RE TAKING AND WHAT THEY ARE USED FOR
17. DON’T GO TO THE PHARMCY AT LUNCH TIME OR IMMEDIATLEY AFTER WORK AND WAIT FOR YOUR PRESCRIPTION – As a pharmacist, I feel that more errors are likely to occur during those times because they are the busiest times. Drop it off and come back later in the day.
18. Call your insurance company if you have questions about your policy or your copays- IT IS NOT THE PHARMACY’S JOB.
19. If you don’t have refills on your medication, the pharmacy will most likely give you enough medicine till we can contact your doctor. We will contact him/her as a COURTESY. However, we will not chase your doctor for days becuase YOU RAN OUT OF YOUR MEDICINE. THATS RIGHT, IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO MANAGE YOUR MEDICATIONS ONCE YOU TAKE THEM HOME.
20. Grocery stores and Costco are considered retail pharmacies and suffer the same problems that “major” retail pharmacies do.
21. Find a pharmacy that provides you with good service. Get to know the staff and believe me, you’ll have a great experience for years to come.
22. As the patient, take responsibility for your own health care. Simple things like checking the name on the bottle when you pick it up, looking at the tablet and checking it against what is says it should look like on the pharmacy receipt are all simple things you can do as the patient to protect yourself.
22. I AGREE THAT ONE ERROR IS TOO MANY, BUT WE’RE ALL HUMAN AND NO PHARMACIST WANTS TO BE THE ONE WHO MAKES A TRAGIC ERROR. BUSY PHARMACY OR NOT, WE ARE ALL FOCUSED ON OUR JOBS AND MY PATIENTS’ HEALTH AND SAFETY COME FIRST
23. Feel free to contact me with any questions/comments

A year or two ago, i was working a shift with one of our staff Rphs. He had been with the company for many years. For the month or so before, he had several dispencing errors. Nothing overly serious, no one was hurt or anything from them, but they were there, mostly from him rushing because people today want everything now.
At any rate, we are working away. I was rocking the register and he was on the phone with one of our frequent fliers, arguing with the man bc the patient wanted his narcs filled early. Long and short of it is, the People, the selfish people with their constant harrassment had finally pushed this fine man to the edge, burned him out. he got off the phone, looked at me and told me he quit.
After watching ABCs take on retail pharmacy, i can honestly say i understand how he feels. i can handle the people who treat us like their own personal secretaries. the ones that treat us like doormats. people who accuse us if money grubbing. Ive stood there and took it when folks have ripped up one side of me and down the other. Taken it when they throw things, no i am not exaggerating, pens, meds, insulin, Clipboards. The whining, rude comments, harrassment, rolling of the eyes, and screaming, it all rolls off my back. and my colleges’s backs. bc we are helping. whether arrogence inhibits people from seeing it, we are here, providing a necessary service. And frankly, it breaks my heart to sit down and watch a show that makes us look like monsters, uncaring money craving parasites leeching off the healthcare world.

I wish i woulda known about that type of job in high school. wonder how many pills get stolen every year by high school TA’s.

In response to many of these responces…Pharmacist DO work in various chains and hospitals before they graduate, they have internships just like MD’s. Whether a technician is 16 or 50 doesn’t matter, it is the Pharmacist who does the final check on the medication.
Does everyone realize how the news always points out the bad instead of all of the good pharmacists do??
Just a little fact for everyone: Drug companies take more than 80% of their profits and put it back into research for new medications. Did the news ever mention that???

This is the one point everyone needs to remember: ABC took 100 scripts from 100 pharmacies in their case study. Walgreens has thousands of pharmacies that each fill on average thousands of scripts a day. If they find 3 scripts that are not perfect out of 100, that is pretty near perfect. People here have said they would rather go to a “mom and pop” type pharmacy instead of retail. It’s the “mom and pop” type pharmacies that get to run it however they want. Pharmacies like Walgreens are run with standards and practices that the other pharmacies don’t have to. If you want the real and consistant type service, you want Walgreens.

Us pharmacists need to stand up for ourselves and not be bullied by IMPATIENT, DEMANDING customers, and Corporate GREED monsters who demand us to fill hundreds of prescriptions a day with promises of prescriptions out in 10 minutes or less. Many times we are understaffed with NO LUNCH BREAK AND BARELY ENOUGH TIME FOR A BATHROOM BREAK! It’s no wonder mistakes happen! Don’t blame the pharmacist…we are overworked and underappreciated! Customers rush us to get prescriptions out in 2 minutes and wonder why there are mistakes!? It doesn’t make sense. What I really love are people who will wait hours at a MD office for a Paid doctors visit but can’t wait 30 seconds for FREE advice from a pharmacist…it’s gotten to be ridiculous. I had a customer give me a dirty look b/c I had to excuse myself to the restroom while she was waiting for her prescription. Little did she know I had gone almost 8 hours before taking that bathroom break…people are animals. Enough said.

I had to have surgrey on my back last year. I was in the hospital 5 days, and my wife had my scripts filled at CVS. After 2 days I started to bleed out the staples in my back ( 50 of them were there ). I went back to the hospital and was told that I had a very bad infection that found its way to my bones. I showed the DR what I was taking, and 1 of the scripts was for a YEAST infection–that caused the problem I had. That pill that I was taking twice a day created a blood dis-order, that caused my infection. I spent 21 days in the hospital because I was given the wrong meds. I could have died. I blame no one—I just believe that that they are over worked and underpaid.
Lets take some money we are sending to Iraq and help get more people involved with Pharmacy work.
The man with the yeast infection !!

As a state registered and Certified Pharmacy Technician I am disapointed by the reporting of this issue. While it is important to acknowledge the fact that errors occur, as they do in all areas of medicine, it is also extremely important to report on all sides of this issue.
As Anthony and others have pointed out, the “fast food” I want it now demand is a big part of the issue. With the volume that most pharmacies handle, it would be impossible for the pharmacist to handle all data entry and preparation of the prescriptions that they fill. The pharmacy technician is an absolutely crucial and under appreciated part of the pharmacy team. Pharmacists are lucky if they get a restroom break and with out the help of technicians, it would be impossible to fulfill the needs of the patients that we serve.
That being said, of course accuracy is the most important thing. The case in fla. has little to do with who preformed the data entry on the prescription. The pharmacist is responsible for double checking ALL prescriptions. The error was not caught and that is unfortunate, but to report that 16 year olds are dispensing medications is inaccurate and irresponsible. Pharmacists are dispensing medications.
The public can play a big role in improving pharmacy accuracy by not only educating themselves and ensuring that they know what the Dr. prescribed, but also by understanding the importance that time plays in achieving accuracy. Don’t complain about how long your prescription takes. Give us time to do the job right, and realize that it is something that requires concentration and addequite time to complete. Urge your state and the federal government to provide Pharmacists with trained assistants. Practice empathy when dealing with the staff at your pharmacy. Let them know that you understand the importance of what they are doing.

Cat Diabetis Needles Walg.phar SITCOM E
had the script info PREVIOUSLY in the computer from the Vet for getting the Cat diab special kind of needles COST $50 Problem: Went back to store a 24hr Pham.Clerk gave fit about it not being in computer REFUSED to call VET Script(daytime)Got Mgr Ph clk get it W.computer Cat not exist)things wentfrom bad to worse Much Later Leavingw/CAT needles&being Very upset she left w/o signCC Store called imedially return OK back in after school(FT work&School) c Got10:30 CC b4 midnight closeout Voided They needed medicine packaging Nor told to carry in meds paperwork Hostle again Called next day Diff.Mgrmt He told her forget it GOOD Will STORE He CB renaged Wants her now She still wants to cc pay HAVE IT OVER WITH HELP ANYONE??

I am a store manager for Walgreens, and I have to honestly say that I regret having watched your report. I was shocked by the misleading information you aired, and even more disappointed at the way you portrayed Walgreens.You have misinformed the viewing public, and as far as I am concerend you have damaged completely the credibility of your show. I don’t see how I could ever again watch your show, and be confident that your reporting is/was fair, honest and balanced. I used to enjoy your show, and felt more informed afterward.Now, I can only view your program as entertainment value- similar to that of the National Enquirer.I am a firm believer of ‘if the shoe fits, then wear it’ but you sir dont seem to know the difference between a foot and a shoe. I had no idea that ABC News was in so much trouble with ratings that they would resort to the bogus tabloid route.

The problem is massive, almost astronomical when considering the cost of human lives that it affects. It’s a chain of events and many can be blamed, not just one source. It’s a spectrum of errors, not just one. The health industry is complex, and the steps taken to prevent such tragic cases must be handled on a multi-level scale. Firstly, the doctors should take precautions when writing a precription ( a common error ) because they don’t take out enough time, or are over worked and simply over look the drug history of the patient or potential OCD’s can also have serious interactions. Then comes the pharmacist, who with the right education and high quality training should be the second part of this complex chain, and detect possible life altering or life threatening interactions. Now here is where the chief pharmacist should be held responsible for providing proper training to the pharmacist technicians. Another important area is of course the company itself. They should allow their workers with off-time, and while on the job, give them sufficient time to concentrate at what they are doing. The health industry is what every person depends on, and therefore such issues cannot be taken lightly by any party. Therefore quality assurance and control cannot be compromised at any cost. No one company is to blame, it must be the duty of every person working in the industry to realise the gravity of the situation. I feel this is a ‘wake-up’ report and should should make us aware as consumers, that errors happen, and we should also be aware not ignornant of what we put inside our bodies.
Anne MD

all i have to say is ive been in the pharmacy business for a little over a year but i take my job VERY serious and i am ABSOLUTELY careful and cautious of every little thing i do in the pharmacy where i work…everyone knows that everyone makes mistakes but in this business when there are people’s lives at stake there are no room for mistakes.i do have to say i have made some but none were life threatening…i always double sometimes triple count and check anything and everthing that i do that is concerning a medication that i fill and even check my fellow employees as well as the supervising pharmacists because needless to say that the supervising pharmasists where i work have made plenty of mistakes that are definetly not excuseable and most of the time they are lucky because i am the person that cathces the mistakes so it never makes it to the customer/patient to actually harm them. unfortunatletly i cant be there 24/7 to watch over everyone and do everything as much as my boss would like me too if he could believe me he would but he definetly doesnt pay me enough to do what i do..but point being i feel that a pharmacy technician can do just as good if not better than a pharmacist ..anyone can for that matter as long as they are cautious and actually care about making sure that their customers and patients are safe with no question what so ever.of course plenty of training needs to be done along with alot of studying, researching, schooling,and all the information to actually know everything that a pharmacist knows but i am just as capable as filling and checking prescriptions, i just dont have the degree and definitly not the $100,000 income each year and i would still like to know a lot more there is to know about medicine so that i can be able to answer ANY question that was asked of me. many people do ask me plenty of questions that i am not sure of how to answer so being a responsible person i ask a supervising pharmacist because i definitly do not want to give any false information to anybody that could possibly harm them at all. but i would like to be able to answer them myself with no help from anyone else but my own brain and knowledge. i learn new things every day and i am very greatful for that because i did also graduate a half year earlier than my class with honors and i believe myself to be a smart person and i always like to learn new things especially things that are helpful in life and things that can possibly save someone oneday or everyday. i like to believe myself to be one of the best pharmacy technicians because i feel like i do more work than is actuallly described in my profession and i have better than great customer service qualities and i remember about 90-95% of everyone who walks into the pharmacy where i work and we do an average of 200-400 prescriptions everyday. i am very friendly and people love me. many customers call and ask to talk to me rather than the pharmacist because they trust me more with their prescriptions and that makes me feel so wonderful to make people feel that way about me.ive gotten presents from my customers on holidays and ive only known them for maybe months at times .its really great i love my job i just get very frustrated with my boss at times because i dont believe he appreciates the work that i do for him and it is way more than any tech probably ever does. he never shows thanks by even saying thank you and im only making 8.25 an hour. he wont pay me overtime and im lucky if i get a lunch or a 5min break because i am so busy with everything. i work more than 80 hours every 2 weeks and i get one day off a week. i live, sleep, and breath that place. ive never called in for an actual day off to myself, there was jsut one saturday a 3hr day that i had a 24hr bug and my face was in the toilet i was so sick i had to have my boyfriend call in for me, and an hour later tried to go in just because i felt bad but i got up and had to lay back down because i was so dizzy i thought i was going to fall over. i have been thinking about goin into pharmacy school to become a pharmacist. i am 20 years old as of now and i would like to have at least one child before i turn 25 and i know school would take longer than that ..im not looking forward to the schooling but i know it would be good and intellengent for me to go. my boyfriend keeps trying to talk me into it because he knows what a great pharmacist i would be and believe me i could give you my word that i would live up to any expectation that a pharmacist should have. i would do it not just becausue i could make a great life for my family and myself but i would make a difference on the people that get prescriptions. everyone should feel comfortable and safe with there pharmacist because really their lives are in their hands becasue one wrong pill could really hurt someone and even kill someone. so jsut to ease hopefully many minds i just wanted to let everyone know that i have everyones best interest at heart and in my hands and i ALWAYS make sure that no mistakes are made by mine and i try my best to avoid any mistakes that are made by my supervising pharmacists and any other fellow emplyees of mine so that nobody gets sick, hurt or otherwise. but i cant be everywhere so also just make sure that, even though you shouldnt have to, always check your prescriptions and if you have ANY questions ALWAYS ask because you ALWAYS want to be positive and there are no stupid questions, so if you have any doubt always double check it never hurts okay. i wish there were more people like me but unfortunatly there isnt so good luck to everyone and hopefully you can find a loyal and trustworthy person to fill your prescriptions. thank you all for taking the time (if you did) to read my comments becasue i know i can talk a lot but that is who i am and i am a wonderful person and love to help anyone that i can whenever i can especially when they are appreciative and understanding and even when they are not because in my book everyone deserves a chance. -katie