Sometimes I Wonder

An old lady came into the pharmacy today, right around closing time (duh). She's got a list of about 20 medications, and explains to me that she lost some at the lake. She walks with a limp, and cannot stand for long, as she's resting her weight on the counter. She explains to me that she's going to try to get the medications she lost filled. I explained to her that if she's lost her medication, she'll most likely have to pay cash, unless she only had a couple days left.

So I ask her her name, she tells it to me. I can't find her in the computer system, so I ask her if she's filled here before. "No," is the answer I get. I ask her what pharmacy she normally goes to, and she tells me it's one down the road. Then she goes on and explains she tried to talk to her doctor blah blah blah, but the best part was this quote right here.

"Well I tried to get them filled at that pharmacy but they told me the refill was too soon."

I just stared at her, speechless.

I finally sputtered, "Well, it doesn't matter what pharmacy you filled them at, your insurance company is going to tell all of us that the refills are too soon, so you'll have to pay cash." I almost felt bad, because the only controlled substance on her list was Tramadol, so she obviously wasn't a seeker. Then I saw it, she had Seroquel on the list. A 90 day supply. Then I felt bad. That is one expensive mistake. Whoops.

She then asked me if she could get them cheaper here or at the other pharmacy. I told her there was no way I could know that, seeing that I don't know their prices. I then told her she would probably get the best deal at Wal*Mart. I then threw up a little in my mouth, said I was sorry, and she left. This was 10 minutes after we were supposed to close. The pharmacist was nowhere to be found. She let me handle this. So much for "Let me get a pharmacist for you," huh?

Now here is a lesson in responsibility. Take care of your medications. They are expensive. Don't drop them to the bottom of the lake.