During my freshman year in high school, my science teacher assigned us to interview people in the community about how they use science in their careers. Although I don’t remember most of the people I spoke with, I can tell you that I spent meaningful time with a local community pharmacist who changed my life.
What I saw was a man who loved his career and truly cared for his patients. In an instant, I knew that I wanted to become a pharmacist, and I never wavered from that goal throughout high school.
Knowing what you want to be when you grow up at age 14 is unusual, but it is very liberating. I simply had to work backwards to figure out how to achieve my goal of becoming a pharmacist.
After high school, I chose to attend Ohio Northern University (ONU) because it had a unique pharmacy program. Rather than attending college for 2 years and then applying to the pharmacy program, ONU students were admitted to the College of Pharmacy from day one.
Although it was expensive, being in pharmacy school from day one and avoiding the risk of rejection made it worthwhile for me.
In college, I spent a lot of time in the library. Although the classwork was difficult, I did well with one exception: organic chemistry.
I did fail organic chemistry—a notorious “weed out” course—but I successfully retook the class over the summer and graduated on time with the rest of my classmates. Failing a course is a difficult stumbling block, but I stood strong and persevered.
Today, I’m thankful for the wonderful pharmacy profession for so many reasons.
First, I’m thankful that community pharmacists are the health care professionals most accessible to the public. If my local pharmacist wasn’t accessible to me, then I likely would have taken a different career path.
Second, I’m proud of the work we pharmacists do, the diversity of our career options, and the relationships we share with our patients and fellow health care providers.
Pharmacy is a profession that makes a real difference in people’s lives. It certainly has made all the difference in mine.
Bizarre, Evanston, Hospital, Patients, USA | Healthy | April 7, 2019
(My grandfather has fallen, hit his head hard, and had a stroke. Doctors are trying to figure out if the stroke he had caused the fall or if he fell so hard that it caused a stroke. Shortly after he is transferred to the stroke ward from the ICU, the doctor is asking my grandfather some questions to check his mental condition.)
Doctor: “Do you know what year it is?”
Grandfather: “Lady Gaga.”
Doctor: *slight pause* “Okay, but do you know the year?”
Grandfather: “2029.”
(Unfortunately, he wasn’t joking with his responses, but his doctors say he is making a good recovery even though he’s not quite sure what year we’re in.)
Doctor/Physician, Hospital, Jerk, Salt Lake City, USA, Utah | Healthy | April 5, 2019
(My mom is an x-ray tech at a world-renowned children’s hospital. She helped pioneer a number of techniques now commonly used today, but the hospital’s main focus is on the patient’s overall welfare. This involves things like minimizing the number of x-ray frames taken to cut down on radiation exposure, cropping x-rays as tightly as they can to cut down on radiation scatter, etc. Most doctors treat the techs well and make sure they have all the necessary information, but one new doctor doesn’t seem to get how things work at this hospital.)
Doctor: “I need a head x-ray on this patient. Forward facing.”
Mom: “Great. What am I looking for?”
Doctor: “You don’t get to ask questions. I tell you what frames to take, and you take them. Me: doctor! You: tech! You don’t talk to me!”
Mom: *doesn’t say a word, just smiles politely and goes to take the x-ray*
(As per the hospital’s policy, she narrows the field as small as she possibly can, so literally only the skull itself is in the path of the radiation. The kid has a full head of curly hair, by the way. After the films are developed and sent up, the doctor comes storming down, furious.)
Doctor: “How could you not get a picture of his shunt?!”
Mom: “What shunt?”
Doctor: “The one in his skull! The whole reason for wanting to x-ray him in the first place!”
Mom: “Well, maybe, if you’d told me why you needed the x-ray, I would have focused on that area. Instead, you just told me to shut up and take the x-ray, which I did exactly according to hospital policy. The kid has a ton of hair; there’s no way to see the shunt, and no one told me he had one, nor was it included in the written orders. If you want an x-ray of something specific, you need to specify!”
Doctor: *glares, and then stomps off to tattle to the head of Radiology, who reads him the riot act for being so rude to a tech*
(Mom did retake the film, this time focusing strictly on the shunt and its surrounding area. She felt very bad that the kid was being exposed to a second dose of radiation, however small, though.)
Doctor/Physician, Hospital, Ignoring & Inattentive, Salt Lake City, USA, Utah | Healthy | April 3, 2019
(My mom is an x-ray tech at a world-renowned children’s hospital. Patient welfare is the top priority, so they try to minimize tests and procedures as much as possible.)
Mom: *walks into the break room to see two doctors and an x-ray tech — all male — looking at a series of films*
Doctor #1 : “Obviously, we need to operate, cancerous or not. So, I say we just skip the biopsy and go straight in. We don’t want to put her under twice for no reason!”
Doctor #2 : “I agree, but these tumors are very unique. I’ve never seen anything quite like them, and with them being so close to both her heart and her lungs, I’m worried about what will happen if we do take them out. We don’t know how firmly they’re attached or entrenched in either of those organs.”
Mom: *curious* “Do you mind if I have a look at the films? If you haven’t seen a tumor like this before, it must be very rare.”
([Doctor #2 ] hands over the films, and then continues to debate with his colleague about how quickly they can schedule the surgery, while Mom spends a few minutes looking closely at the x-rays.)
Mom: “Um, guys? We’ve got a problem here, but I don’t think it’s the problem you think it is.”
Tech: “What do you mean?”
Mom: “I don’t think that’s a tumor.”
Doctor #1 : “Of course it’s a tumor! What else could it be?”
Mom: “A hair tie.”
All: “WHAT?!”
Mom: “You know, those little round hair ties? The elastic kind with a pair of balls on the ends that little girls like?”
Doctor #2 : “Yes, my daughter uses those. But what makes you think…”
Mom: “These tumors are perfectly round, they’re both exactly the same size, they slightly overlap, and if you look really closely, this one even has a hole through it… exactly where the elastic would be.”
All: *looks like she just hit them in the face with a board*
Tech: “You can’t be serious!”
Mom: “Do you want me to retake the film, just in case? I mean, I don’t want to expose her to more radiation, but better a single film than opening her rib cage! And if I’m wrong, then fine. But we wouldn’t want to operate on a child without being certain.”
Doctor #2 : “Do it. Fast! She’s in room [number].”
Mom: “On it!”
(She runs up to the girl’s room
Mom: “Hi! I’m [Mom], one of the x-ray techs here at [Hospital]. There was a little problem with one of your daughter’s x-rays, so we need to retake it really fast. No need to worry!”
Girl: “I wiggled, didn’t I?”
Mom: “Don’t worry, sweetie. You just need to hold still for one last picture, I promise!”
(Mom, the girl, and her mother all head down to Radiology. When then get to the door, Mom asks the girl to take off her hair tie — yes, one of the kind with the little plastic balls! — from the end of the braid hanging down her back.)
Girl: “Do I have to? The other guy didn’t make me, and I don’t want my braid coming out!”
Mom: “Here. Let me see if I can find you an elastic. We just can’t have the little baubles; they might confuse the doctors when they’re reading your x-ray.” *goes to her purse and digs out an elastic of her own* “Here you go! Your mom can help you change that, and then she can wait right outside the door. We’ll only be a minute.”
(After helping the girl wrap a protective apron around her waist and hips, Mom took the film, and then the girl went back to her room. Mom immediately developed the film, and, as predicted, there were no tumors. The little girl was treated for her pneumonia and was sent home, healthy and happy, a week later. It became hospital policy after that to check for hair ties, barrettes, bobby pins, etc., before taking any x-rays
Blood Donation, Madison, Silly, USA, Wisconsin | Healthy | March 31, 2019
(It’s my second time selling my plasma. The tech who got me hooked up the first time is floating around but isn’t the one to hook me up this time. I hear them talking about how many jabs it took them and how fast the machine is pulling blood out of me this time.)
Me: “You’re making me sound like a science experiment.”
Medical Office, Patients, UK | Healthy | March 29, 2019
(I am a hearing aid technician running a clinic in a local GP surgery. I have no medical training at all. My clients wait in the main reception area until I call them by name.)
Me: “Mr. [Unusual Name]?”
Man: “That’s me.”
(He stands and follows me to the treatment room.)
Me: “Please take a seat.”
(I make a note on my paperwork before turning to him, only to find he’s removed his shirt and is untucking his vest.)
Me: “What are you doing?!”
Man: “You need my chest, don’t you?”
Me: “What for?”
Man: “To listen to my heart.”
Me: “I’m here to fix your hearing aids!”
Man: “What hearing aids? Nothing wrong with my ears!”
Me: “Um… I think there’s been a mistake. Please get dressed!”
(It turned out there were two men with the same very unusual last name, both in the waiting room at the same time. And of course, the man with the faulty hearing aids couldn’t hear me!)
Birmingham, Doctor/Physician, England, Hospital, UK |
Healthy | March 27, 2019
(I have been pretty unwell with a virus for a week or so that has caused my asthma to flare up and has required me to take a short course of steroids. About a day or so after finishing the course, I start getting palpitations whilst at work, so I go to the hospital to see if it is something serious. This conversation happens when the doctor is arranging for me to get a chest x-ray.)
Doctor: “Any chance you could be pregnant?”
Me: “Nope.”
Doctor: “Okay, well, we still need you to do a pregnancy test.”
Me: *wondering why he even asked, then* “Why? There is literally no way I could be pregnant.”
Doctor: “Well, these things can happen!”
Me: “I’m asexual, doc.”
(The doctor frowns, looking a little confused.)
Me: *sigh* “I haven’t ‘been’ with anyone it over seven years. Trust me; there is no way I am pregnant.”
Doctor: “Look. The thing is that we just have to test all women, anyway. It’s kind of a rule.”
Me: “???”
(I had to take the test. Shocker, I was not pregnant.)
You Can Tell From My (Dial) Tone That I Can’t Speak
Finland, Health & Body, Helsinki, Hospital, Nurses | Healthy | March 25, 2019
(I am working in an ER doing office duties, including admitting walk-ins. A phone rings.)
Me: “This is [Hospital] with [My Name] speaking. How can I help you?”
Caller: *absolute silence*
Me: “Sir or ma’am, are you unable to speak? Do you have a medical emergency?”
Caller: *still absolute silence*
(After about 60 seconds of silence, the caller hangs up. A few minutes later the phone rings again. The same thing happens again. I am getting really worried that this might be a bad emergency, like a stroke, that can leave a person without speak. I start wondering if I could communicate with the person using the phone’s dial tones and how to do it. But again, the person hangs up before I figure out a way to do it. The phone rings a third time. This time it’s the husband of a nurse, both of whom I know very well.)
Husband: “Hi, [My Name]. [Nurse] has really bad laryngitis. She can’t speak and can’t come to work today.”
Me: “Thank God. I was trying to figure out how to communicate with a person who can’t speak.”
Bad Behavior, England, Nurses, School, UK | Healthy | March 22, 2019
(I have recurring nosebleeds. I’m at school when I get my first one this year, and I ask to go down to the nurse’s office. The nurse isn’t there, so I just wait around with a tissue under my nose to catch any leakage. After ten minutes, a nurse comes in. I have never seen her before.)
Nurse: “Look at all the mess you’re making! Didn’t your mother ever teach you manners?”
Me: “I have a nosebleed. I can’t exactly stop it. All the blood is in the tissue, anyway.”
(She huffs and leaves the room. A few minutes later, she comes back with a plaster and attaches it to my nose — as in, over the nostrils — pushing so hard it makes the bleeding worse. I protest, but she leaves the room again. I yank the plaster off and some of the blood drips onto the floor. I’m in too bad a mood to clean it up. She comes back in.)
Nurse: “You messy boy! Look at all the blood on the floor!”
Me: “It’s one drop. I’ll clean it up before I go.”
Nurse: “This wouldn’t have happened if you’d kept the plaster on!”
(I swear at her — admittedly, this was wrong — and she storms out, returning with my tutor.)
Tutor: “[My Name], I hear you’ve been swearing at [Nurse]. You know our policy on this kind of behaviour.”
Me: “I’ll be more than happy to apologise, after she apologises for insulting me and acting like my nosebleed has been a personal grievance to her. She even stuck a plaster on my nose!”
Tutor: “[My Name]! You will apologise this instant, and I’m giving you a detention tomorrow. This is unacceptable behaviour. [Nurse] is the best nurse we’ve ever had!”
(I look between him and the nurse, who is looking triumphantly smug.)
Me: “That isn’t something you should be proud of.”
(I ended up with a week’s worth of detentions or that, but I refused to go — which my parents agreed with after I told them. The last straw was when they sent a letter home saying I had been suspended. My mum went down to the school to speak with the head teacher and the nurse. Apparently, she had only been in the building a couple of minutes when the nurse ran out in tears. The school retracted the suspension, but my parents moved me to a better school equipped with more competent staff.)
France, Hospital, Nurses, Patients | Healthy | March 20, 2019
(After surgery on my leg, I need to pee, so I ask the nurse for help using the bedpan. After I’m finished, I can’t see the contents from my position but she obviously can, and she looks up with a horrified expression
Nurse: “This… This is your urine?”
Me: “Er, yes.”
Nurse: *speechless*
Me: “Oh! I forgot! I’m on my period!”
(She immediately sighs with relief. Sorry for scaring you, nurse!)
Bizarre, Crazy Requests, Ignoring & Inattentive, Pets & Animals, USA, Vet | Healthy | March 17, 2019
(I’m just having one of those “glitch in the Matrix” weeks, where weird things keep happening out of the blue. This is just one example. I work in a vet clinic. It’s Tuesday evening. I’m the only staff member still at work, and we’re less than an hour from closing. The vet has gone to her other office for the evening, and we’re only still open for pickup — meds, patients, etc. The door opens and a woman walks in.)
Me: “Hi. How can I help you?”
Woman: *smiles confidently at me* “Oh, hello. I am here with my chicken.”
Me: *sure I heard wrong since we don’t treat livestock* “I’m sorry, your chicken?”
Woman: “Yes. She is sick.”
Me: “I apologize, but we don’t see livestock here. And the vet is not here currently. But you may want to try [Larger Emergency Vet Hospital]; I believe they see livestock. I can give you their information if you need it—”
Woman: *suddenly enraged, her face turning violently red* “NO! I was told you see chickens!”
Me: “Ma’am, I apologize, but we, unfortunately, do not have a vet who treats livestock here. I recommend trying to see if [Larger Emergency Vet Hospital] is able to see her.”
(Getting redder by the moment, she shoves the basket with her chicken in it in my face; she’d had it under the raised counter where I couldn’t see it.)
Woman: “YOU NEED TO SEE MY CHICKEN NOW! SHE IS SICK!”
Me: “I’m so sorry, ma’am, but there’s nothing I can do. Even if my vet was here — unfortunately, she isn’t right now — she doesn’t treat chickens. Other than referring you elsewhere, I can’t help you.”
(She shoves her chicken in my face again. It is getting increasingly upset each time the owner violently swings her basket into my face.)
Woman: “YOU ARE WRONG! I WAS TOLD YOU CAN SEE CHICKENS!”
(I open my mouth to repeat everything again when the woman abruptly makes a frustrated screech to cut me off. Clearly aware she’s not going to get her way, she stomps out. Then, from the hallway, I hear
Bosses & Owners, Doctor/Physician, Hospital, Ignoring & Inattentive, USA | Healthy | March 16, 2019
(I throw my back out at work. I am a female in my 20s. My line manager, who is male and around my age, gives me a ride to the ER and helps me in as I am in too much pain to walk. We are both in uniform. We speak to a doctor and explain exactly what happened, and he orders an x-ray. Afterward, my manager helps me into a cubicle and the doctor comes back in. I am still in a hospital gown from the x-ray.)
Doctor: “You’ve torn some ligaments. You’ll need to rest for two weeks to let them start to heal. I’ll get you some pain relief, and then you can go home.”
(He leaves and comes back a few minutes later.)
Doctor: “I know you’ve had an x-ray, but I have to ask. Is there any chance you could be pregnant?”
Me: “No, none.”
Doctor: “Are you sure?”
(My manager looks away uncomfortably.)
Me: “I’m certain I’m not pregnant.”
Doctor: “Okay, this will help for a few hours, and I’ll also give you a prescription for some painkillers.” *whips out a syringe*
Me: “Okaaay…”
Doctor: *reaching for my gown* “This needs to go in your buttock, so if you’ll turn around…”
Manager: “I’ll just be outside!” *turns bright red and literally leaps through the curtains*
El Paso, Health & Body, home, Patients, Siblings, Texas, USA | Healthy | March 15, 2019
(My older sister currently works at as an ER nurse. I am woken up one Saturday morning by my cell phone ringing.)
Me: “Hello?”
Sister: “I need you to come downstairs, right now.”
(I get up and walk down to the living room to find her and my parents all watching me descend.)
Me: “What’s going on?”
Sister: “I slipped on the stairs and broke my toe.”
Me: “You need someone to drive you to the hospital?”
Sister: “NO! My coworkers and I always joke about someone coming to the ER because they stubbed their toe. I am not going to the hospital because I hurt my toe.”
Me: “So, what do you need from me?”
Sister: “I need you to reset the bone. Mom is too squeamish and Dad is too gentle. You just need to pull on it quick, like taking off a bandage.”
Me: *shrugs* “Okay.” *walks over and yanks on the crooked toe*
Sister: *gasp of pain followed by a relieved sigh* “Thank you.”
(During her next shift at work, someone commented on her slight limp. She admitted to the accident and the doctor on hand insisted on x-raying her foot. The bone in the toe was indeed broken, but perfectly realigned.)
(I am home alone on our farm one afternoon — my family is out on errands — and there is a knock on the door. When I open the door, a man is standing there and there’s an SPCA van in the driveway.)
SPCA: “Hello, miss. We’ve had a complaint put forth about your animal welfare.”
Me: “What?!”
SPCA: “That horse over there.”
(He pointed at a horse in the field that my mum had taken in from a neighbour who was going to send her to the glue factory — yup, that’s really a thing. She was clearly sickly and dying, but we were giving her the best life we could until she passed, something her previous owner had no intention of doing. It was a serious charge and took almost a week to clear up… and $200 to get the vet out and write a note that we were giving her all the care she needed.)
Bizarre, Illinois, Insurance, Pharmacy, USA | Healthy | March 14, 2019
(My insurance company has decided to stop covering one of my prescriptions for unknown reasons. I get a notice from them on a Friday afternoon, as well as an email from the pharmacy, that the prescription in question is due for a refill. Since it’s Friday at three pm, I figure I’ll just pay the cash price for it this month and call my insurance company next week. I click the link in the email to refill and go back to work. An hour later, I get a text update saying the prescription has been put on hold. I call my pharmacy.)
Me: “Hi. My name is [My Name], and I’m calling regarding my prescription I just sent for a refill.”
Rep #1: “Sure, I’ll look at that… Oh, it looks like your insurance won’t cover it for whatever reason.”
Me: “I know. I’ll just pay the cash price this month. How much will it be?”
Rep #1: *timidly* “[Amount].”
Me: “Okay, that’s fine. When can I pick it up?”
Rep #1: “You’re going to pay it?”
Me: “Well, sure. What other option do I have?”
Rep #1: “Oh… okay! I’ll finish it up for you. It should be ready in thirty minutes.”
Me: “Great. Thanks!”
(After I get out of work, I stop by the pharmacy. There’s a different rep behind the counter.)
Me: “Hi, I’m [My Name], and I believe there’s one prescription ready for me.”
Rep #2: “Okay, I see that here. Hmm… looks like there’s a copay.”
Me: “I know.”
Rep #2: “There shouldn’t be.”
Me: “They already told me. [Amount], right?”
Rep #2: “Let me look into this.”
Me: “It’s okay. My insurance company screwed up. I’ll call them on Monday.”
Rep #2: “You shouldn’t have to pay for this. There’s never a copay on [prescription].”
Me: *slightly irritated that he just announced what I’m taking to the entire pharmacy* “It’s fine. Really. Can I just pay?”
Rep #2: “I can give you a discount.”
Me: “The copay’s not that bad. It’s been a long day and I’d really like to pay and go home.”
Rep #2: “If you’re sure… Okay, I’ll put it in. I’ll even throw on that discount. If you want to have a seat, I’ll holler when it’s ready.”
Me: “Uh… the lady I talked to earlier said it’d be ready by now.”
Rep #2: “No, we were waiting until you stopped in. It’ll only be about twenty minutes.”
(I’m extremely annoyed now, but I’m trying my best not to show it.)
Me: “Look, I’ll just come back tomorrow. No problem.”
Rep #2: “It’s only twenty minutes. Maybe less!”
(I wave and walk out. I drive back over the next day, where there is yet another rep behind the counter.)
Me: “Hi, I’m [My Name], and there should be one ready for me.”
Rep #3: “Yes, it’s filled and ready to go. One minute while I grab it!”
(He grabs it and starts ringing me out.)
Rep #3: “Oh, um… I need to get the pharmacist. Something isn’t correct.”
Me: “If it’s the copay, I know about it! It’s not an issue!”
([Rep #3] disappears into the back. I throw up my hands in frustration. He comes back out a few minutes later.)
Rep #3: “There’s a copay on this. There shouldn’t be. We can look into this for you.”
Me: “LISTEN TO ME. You are the third person that I’ve explained this to. I know about the copay. It’s fine. My insurance company screwed up. All I want to do is pay and go home!”
Rep #3: “I apologize for the issue. I don’t know what happened with your insurance… Hold on. Did you say you are going to pay?!”
Me: *through gritted teeth* “YES.”
Rep #3: “Oh. OH! Yes, I’d be happy to process that for you! No problem!”
(I can only imagine how many temper tantrums people have thrown over copays to prompt that reaction from THREE pharmacy techs!)
Bizarre, Funny Names, Germany, Insurance, Medical Office, Patients, Reception | Healthy | March 13, 2019
(I work for an insurance company. When people forget or lose their insurance cards, the doctor’s office often calls us to confirm if the insurance is up and running. I get one of these calls.)
Receptionist: “I am calling to confirm the insurance of a patient. It’s [Patient], born [date], living at [address].”
(I look up the data, double checking that I am really talking to a doctor’s office.)
Me: “Yeah, he was insured with us up to [date a few months in the past].”
Receptionist: “Well, do you know where he is insured now? He is sitting here, waiting for treatment.”
Me: “What do you mean, he is sitting there? According to my information, he died a few months ago.”
(Turns out, the doctor had two patients with the same name and birthday, and both were insured with us. And the receptionist called up the file just using that information. Only after we asked the patient for his address did we confirm that he was the other patient. I still wonder what went through his mind when the receptionist told him, “I have your insurance on the line; they say you’re dead.”)
Bizarre, Jerk, Medical Office, Patients, USA | Healthy | March 13, 2019
(I am a medical assistant in a community health clinic, with a fully-stocked retail pharmacy on the premises. This patient uses our pharmacy and has been put on a strict refill schedule for his emergency inhalers due to extreme overuse. Normal use is a maximum of two of each per month. He had gone through nine of [Inhaler #1 ] in two months before the pharmacist contacted the doctor. The pharmacists have counseled him multiple times on proper use, and I’ve reached out multiple times to offer an appointment to address the root cause of his trouble breathing. He declines every time, claiming he needs his inhalers to breathe, that he’s going to have a coronary without them, and that we just want him to not be able to get enough oxygen. Every time I hear this rant, I note that it is extremely long-winded and that he can get through multiple run-on sentences without having to take a breath. His doctor has even called him personally to lay down the refill schedule and explain the cardiac-related consequences of continued overuse. I receive a voicemail from this patient, in which he goes on with another long-winded rant about how the doctor NEEDS to refill his medication. Because of a very well-documented refill schedule and the doctor’s notes that he will NOT refill early under any circumstance, as well as previous in-person discussions with this doctor about this patient, I don’t even need to ask the doctor to advise on the situation. I see that one [Inhaler #2 ] should be available for a refill, but [Inhaler #1 ] won’t be available for another week and a half; he’s literally filled it just a few days ago! I call the patient. This is part of the way into the call, and yes, he is yelling the entire time.)
Me: “With all due respect, the inhalers are only treating your symptoms. Continuing to use them at the rate you were doing so puts you at serious risk for a cardiac event, including a heart attack—“
Patient: “NOT GIVING ME MY INHALERS PUTS ME AT A RISK FOR A CORONARY BECAUSE I’M NOT GETTING ENOUGH OXYGEN. YOU PEOPLE JUST DON’T WANT ME TO BREATHE!”
Me: “Sir, we don’t want you to have a coronary, either, which is why we want to address the root cause of your condition.”
Patient: “NO. YOU STOP THERE. JUST TELL THE DOCTOR THAT HE NEEDS TO MAKE THE PHARMACIST FILL MY PRESCRIPTION! THEN THE PHARMACIST FILL BE REQUIRED TO FILL IT!”
Me: “[Doctor] can’t make the pharmacist do anything.”
Patient: “YES, HE CAN! ONCE HE WRITES THE PRESCRIPTION THE PHARMACIST IS REQUIRED BY LAW TO FILL IT!”
Me: “Sir, [Doctor] is a doctor; he is not a supervising pharmacist. He can only write the prescription. Pharmacies are allowed, by law, to question and even deny prescriptions at their own discretion for patient safety.”
Patient: “DON’T YOU INSULT MY INTELLIGENCE!”
(He didn’t get his inhaler refilled early. I later went down to the pharmacy and told the supervising pharmacist. He found it even funnier than I did!)
Extra Stupid, Medical Office, Patients, UK | Healthy | March 12, 2019
(In the UK, doctor appointments are generally booked in advance, although there are a few reserved for people who phone on the day for emergencies. The phone rings.)
Me: “Good morning, medical centre.”
Patient: “I’d like to make an appointment with a doctor, please.”
Me: “Okay, if it’s urgent, I can fit you in today, or if it’s not urgent I have an appointment in two days.”
Patient: “I don’t know if it’s urgent or not.”
Me: “Okay, well, if you give me a brief idea of what it’s concerning, I can help you decide.”
Patient: “It’s private. I’ll only discuss it with a doctor.”
Me: “Okay, fair enough. So, did you need an urgent appointment or can it wait a few days?”
Patient: “I’ve told you I don’t know if it’s urgent or not!”
Me: “As I’ve said, if you give me some idea of what it’s concerning—“
Patient: *interrupting* “It’s private! I’m not telling the receptionist!”
Me: “That’s fair enough but then I need you to tell me whether or not it’s urgent.”
Patient: “How many times?! I don’t know!”
Me: “Okay, I’ll give an example. If it’s just something like a sick note–”
Patient: *interrupting again getting increasingly angry* “I don’t need a sick note!”
Me: “It was just an example to help explain the difference between urgent and non-urgent appointments. If you don’t tell me which you need, I can’t book you in.”
Patient: “Well, how am I supposed to know if it’s urgent or not if you won’t tell me?!”
(They then hung up without ever having booked an appointment, or even given their name. I guess it wasn’t that urgent after all.)
Extra Stupid, Lab, Non-Dialogue, Safety, USA | Healthy | March 12, 2019
My dad likes to share this story of when he worked in a science lab.
There were massive security protocols in place for everything, but one day, a pile of what looked like rags was left in a high-traffic area. People were basically forced to step on the rags to walk through. Nobody seemed to be paying attention to them, or be concerned that they were just lying there.
My dad saw them when he arrived for the day and was finally the one who followed protocol and called it in.
Apparently, the response was something to behold. The lab was shut down. Nobody in the entire lab facility was allowed to leave until they went through thorough decontamination; since it was a high-traffic area, basically everyone had to be considered “exposed” to… whatever it was. Their clothes and shoes were confiscated. People in Hazmat suits came, collected the rags, shut down the wing for decontamination, and left everyone sitting around for hours, unable to do anything or leave.
At the end of the day, an all-clear was given: “We’ve determined that there’s no contamination or exposure from the rags. However, if anyone develops a fungus-like infection or rash, please report it immediately.”
My dad commented, “That’s so comforting to hear.”
The entire staff got to be dragged in for a refresher on safety protocols and “why we don’t just walk through a potential contamination hazard.”
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