Oh, The Thrills Of Getting Your Pills, Part 2
This story reminded me of the last time I got my prescriptions refilled. Relevant to this story is the fact that I have two prescriptions: one for ADHD and one for depression.
I had recently come home from college for winter break, and after checking my meds, I decided that I should get them refilled before New Year’s Eve happened and our deductible reset. Not wanting to have to bother people on a holiday, I called [Small Pharmacy] two days before Christmas Eve to see if they could transfer my prescription to [Large Pharmacy], which was much closer to home. [Small Pharmacy] told me that I needed to call [Large Pharmacy] and get them to ask for the transfer. Okay, I can do that. I thanked the person on the line, hung up, and called [Large Pharmacy].
They’re a large chain, so I was on hold for about half an hour before someone picked up, and then I gave her the information about the prescription and she said she would make sure it got done. I figured that would be the end of it.
Fast forward to the day after Christmas. My mom went to the [Large Pharmacy] to pick some things up in the store section and decided that she might as well pick up my prescription while she was there. As it turned out, they only had one prescription for me — that of my ADHD meds. The lady at the pharmacy claimed it was because my antidepressants are narcotics (which they are not), so my psychiatrist’s office had to call them directly. My mom argued a bit with her, mostly trying to explain to her that they were not narcotics, before giving up.
The next day, I called my psychiatrist’s office and asked them to call in the prescription, which they did.
I waited a few days before calling [Large Pharmacy] to check on the status of my prescription. Again, they only had the ADHD one filled and were unable to find any record of my antidepressant prescription. So, I called my psychiatrist’s office again, where they claimed to have already sent in the prescription to [Large Pharmacy] the day before. I tried to call [Large Pharmacy] again to check on this, but after being on hold for over an hour and fifteen minutes, I gave up.
Two days later, I was down to the last two pills of my antidepressants and figured I might as well just go to the pharmacy in person to see if that would help. I ended up getting my ADHD meds, but once again, they did not have any record of my antidepressants.
So, I gave up and did what any overwhelmed young person does when they need help: I texted my parents and asked them for help. I don’t know what my dad did but, he called [Large Pharmacy] and was able to get my antidepressants the same day.
I am not looking forward to the next time I come back from college and have to change pharmacies.
Question of the Week
Have you ever served a bad customer who got what they deserved?
