Repeat Prescription - Pharmacy kept it +€300 for them.

Raiser

6 Months prescription for SingulAir Sachets - 6 X €60 = €360

Pay €60 for one box & Pharmacist tells me the other 5 can be got on proof of what's on their shop Database.

- When I get home I notice that he has decided to keep my prescription instead of stamping it and including it in the bag - effectively means I am committed to spending another €300 in his shop :rolleyes:

This is a treatment my 14 month old is on occasionally and when he needs it I want him to have it - What if I'm in Donegal or wherever and I have no prescription, no GP history and permission to buy an essential medicine over the counter :mad: [and don't say buy it before I leave - that's just missing the point]

Is this crap common practice? I intend to call by after work and request it back, just wondering what you folks think........

antoinolachtnai

Well, what they try to do is manage everything through one pharmacy shop. The reason this is beneficial to you is that it makes it easier for you to benefit from the rebate if you spend more than a certain amount on drugs in a month.

If you need the drug when you're away - I would ask the pharmacist how he would propose to deal with this situation. He might be happy enough to fax the prescription on to the pharmacist in Donegal if required.

Raiser

Thanks for your reply - though I'd still prefer to have it kept safely in my bedside locker and be able to produce it when required than to have to rely on and wait for some cynically greedy profiteer to fax it to me.....

- I'm starting to lose all faith at this point.........

dsane1

Just a thought ,price it up north in boots or similiar .It seems to be a lot cheaper to fill a prescription there too.

sedohre

"Pharmacist tells me the other 5 can be got on proof of what's on their shop Database."

That sounds outrageous to me, if I understand correctly. What exactly does your Pharmacist mean by that?

I'm sure you have the right to your prescription. I would name and shame, who is this pharmacist?

Mr. Presentable

Ask for your prescription back. You may move home in the next weeks.

Tony H

A lot of chemists seem to do this , they say its for your convenience ,but they should ask you if you want to keep it on file , I personally think this is their way to get you to come back and have it refilled in their pharmacy rather than you going somewhere else ,

The same happened to me last week but I always check the bag before I leave to see if my prescription is in the bag , when they retain my prescription I ask for it and tell them that if I want them to retain my prescription I will inform them to do so ,

The thing about this that annoys me most about this is that they act so surprised when you ask for it back, as if it was the norm to keep it on file.

I think they rely on people in Ireland being too embarrassed to ask for the return of their prescription to get away with this crap
end of rant

taram

Used to work in a pharmacy briefly, most customers would actually request we kept the prescriptions for them. Couple of reasons:
-we'd keep it safe for them (issue for lot of older people)
-they could ring in the morning, we'd make the prescription up, they could collect in the afternoon
-certain drugs aren't kept in certain pharmacies due to pharmacy size or local population
-but the main one: 90% of the customers coming in with repeating prescriptions had a drugs payment scheme card with us and wanted the next 5 prescriptions with us. Ever try get a refund from the HSE from pharmacy x if your card is with pharmacy y? Takes 6 months + easily.

It's probably a simple oversight on his part thinking you'd want it kept there, no need to name and shame, he's just doing something most people ask him to. Personally I always asked if the customer didn't, as most people don't check their prescription bag before they leave the shop.

eth0_

dsane1 wrote: »

Just a thought ,price it up north in boots or similiar .It seems to be a lot cheaper to fill a prescription there too.

I don't think you can fill a prescription from an Irish doctor up the north...totally different system.

For instance, in Ireland we have the embarrassing and backward system of writing a prescription on headed paper that anyone could fake.

In the UK it's printed on watermarked NHS prescription sheets with reference numbers etc so the pharmacist can verify it.

dsane1

Afaik people are getting them filled up north without hassle .I dont know about the legalities of it but it is happening.

foggy_lad

they keep it to hold onto your repeat business! some pharmacists will ask if you want them to hold onto the prescription but from experience the larger ones just hold onto it without asking.

Raiser

taram wrote: »

Used to work in a pharmacy briefly, most customers would actually request we kept the prescriptions for them. Couple of reasons:
-we'd keep it safe for them (issue for lot of older people)
-they could ring in the morning, we'd make the prescription up, they could collect in the afternoon
-certain drugs aren't kept in certain pharmacies due to pharmacy size or local population
-but the main one: 90% of the customers coming in with repeating prescriptions had a drugs payment scheme card with us and wanted the next 5 prescriptions with us. Ever try get a refund from the HSE from pharmacy x if your card is with pharmacy y? Takes 6 months + easily.

It's probably a simple oversight on his part thinking you'd want it kept there, no need to name and shame, he's just doing something most people ask him to. Personally I always asked if the customer didn't, as most people don't check their prescription bag before they leave the shop.

Hmmmm - appreciate the input from an alternate perspective Taram

- Maybe he was blameless so; am probably just an incurable cynic after 30 odd years of being hoodwinked left, right and centre!!!!

parsi

My pharmacist keeps our repeat prescriptions (asks every 6 months when a new one arrives).

It's handy because then any family member can drop in and order it without having to root it out.

If it's your local pharmacy it makes sense.

taram

Raiser wrote: »

Hmmmm - appreciate the input from an alternate perspective Taram

- Maybe he was blameless so; am probably just an incurable cynic after 30 odd years of being hoodwinked left, right and centre!!!!

Oh the drug companies are robbing you madly, but most pharamacies aren't out to get you

anotherlostie

I too used to work in a number of different pharmacies, and this was always the custom. As taram and others stated it is predominantly for the benefit of the patient, and I do recall instances where we faxed the script to other pharmacies when the need arose. Not everyone is good at keeping bits of paper in an orderly manner, and are very glad that someone else does their minding for them.

Fajitas!

My local pharmacy in Waterford does this... I started a perscription there over a year ago while down during the summer. I'm up in Dublin during the week. It's a right pain.

Their other tactic is to say they only got in half a box, so they give me half of the months perscription... meaning I have to go back up there... :rolleyes:

daheff

Well...why dont you let the pharmacy keep a record of the prescription on their computer and keep the original yourself?

Anytime I get medication (every month) I make sure that they give me back the prescription. My local pharmacy is very good like that though.


I agree with the OP that the pharmacy does sound like they are trying to stop the OP going to a different pharmacy to get the prescription filled. they can easily give the prescription back AND keep a record themselves

missmatty

I was going mad there this week looking for a new repeat prescription, thought I'd lost it. Several days later I remember that the pharmacy kept it on file (I had the flu so I wasn't paying much attention at the time). They did ask but I was so sick i wasn't really listening so I was like whatever. I don't usually let them keep it

sonners

I have a number of prescribed meds which I take every month. My pharmacist keeps the prescriptions for me so it allows me to call in any time to collect the meds or send family members over. Also, I dont need to worry about filling in forms for the Drugs Payment Card every month as they take care of this for me.

I really think the pharmacist kept the prescription as he/she thought this would have been more convenient for you. Yes, he should have asked and most of the time they do. Alot of people seem to assume its only done to provide advantages to the pharmacist but there's alot of advantages for you too.

daheff, If I understand what you suggesting, its that you should show him your prescription, he takes note that you have it then gives you the meds when you need them based on this note. I doubt this can be done as there's nothing stopping you showing the prescription to ten pharmacists and collecting the medication in all ten. You have to show the actual prescription each and every time you want to collect the medication so that it can be marked as filled/partfilled.

anotherlostie

Fajitas! wrote: »

My local pharmacy in Waterford does this... I started a perscription there over a year ago while down during the summer. I'm up in Dublin during the week. It's a right pain.

Their other tactic is to say they only got in half a box, so they give me half of the months perscription... meaning I have to go back up there... :rolleyes:

Well there is something wrong here because a prescription is only valid for 6 months. Get a new prescription and keep it on your person. Oh and it is possible that the pharmacy doesn't always have a full month's stock of every drug.

daheff

sonners wrote: »

daheff, If I understand what you suggesting, its that you should show him your prescription, he takes note that you have it then gives you the meds when you need them based on this note. I doubt this can be done as there's nothing stopping you showing the prescription to ten pharmacists and collecting the medication in all ten. You have to show the actual prescription each and every time you want to collect the medication so that it can be marked as filled/partfilled.

No...I was suggesting that if the Pharmacy really want to keep a copy then let them...keep the original yourself. Its only going to be a pharmacy where they know you and see you continually returning that *might* let you have the odd repeat without showing the prescription

Anywhere I get my meds I need to bring the repeat prescription and have it stamped.

MysticalSoul

That happened me in Boots one day, so when I was next near there I went in and got it back. They fobbed me off, saying you must have asked us to keep it, even though I stated I had not. Go back in, and just ask for it back.

angeldelight

Again, from the point of view of someone working in a pharmacy it was most likely just an oversight. We keep a lot of our regulars' scripts on file. Similarly a lot prefer to keep it but it does occasionally happen, particularly when busy, that we forget to put the script back into the little folder and hand it back. If I go back into the dispensary and see it sitting there but the patient has left I slip it into the filing cabinet we keep scripts on file so if they come back we can find it easily

GerardKeating

Raiser wrote: »

Is this crap common practice? I intend to call by after work and request it back, just wondering what you folks think........

Did you get the script back ???

pinkypinky

"For instance, in Ireland we have the embarrassing and backward system of writing a prescription on headed paper that anyone could fake."

My doctor told me it is now the law to print prescriptions and sign them - their practice and a couple of others I'm aware of have being doing this for well over a year.

anotherlostie

I got a script yesterday and it was hand written by the GP so I doubt this is the case.

angeldelight

pinkypinky wrote:

My doctor told me it is now the law to print prescriptions and sign them - their practice and a couple of others I'm aware of have being doing this for well over a year.

No that's not true - all that the prescription regs say is that it must be in ink and indelible so a handwritten script covers those bases