Boots indoctrination

amjon.

http://www.tcd.ie/Communications/news/pressreleases/pressRelease.php?headerID=1474&pressReleaseArchive=2010

Isn't it great to see that a corprate body will be busy indoctrinating the next generation of pharmacists from day one? Nice to see Harney getting all cosey with them aswell.

2Scoops

Will future graduates slavishly offer buy-one-get-one-free? Or give out 20%-off coupons? What exactly is Boots going to "indoctrinate" into these gullible dupes?

The government just saved the taxpayer some money, pharm students have better facilities, and Boots got free advertising. Everybody wins. I think the suggestion that Boots have some kind of hidden agenda is a little hysterical.

bleg

In UCC it's sponsored by Unicare. We got a tour of the eli lilly and pfizer plants located nearby.

To be honest, being given a free wine reception by a company would have much more of an effect on students than this.

2Scoops

I think a lot of industry money is spent in bad ways (million on receptions, freebies, etc.), so when I see it being spent on improving education in this country, I think it's quite good. Just think what they could do for education or other worthy pursuits if they stopped spending on the other garbage they do.

bleg

exactly, it's not as if they're training link selling

Delancey

Perhaps this thread should be moved to Conspiracy Theories ?

amjon.

delancey42 wrote: »

Perhaps this thread should be moved to Conspiracy Theories ?

No conspiracy. Alliance Boots are going to destroy the profession in Ireland and here’s how. Boots are going to slowly expand in Ireland over the next 5 to 10 years. They will pick off some of the more profitable pharmacies while weaker ones will die off naturally due to the recent savage cuts by government.
Boots will eventually represent a large enough slice of the market so that they will be able to enter into direct negotiations with the government over the reimbursement prices of drugs. This will happen over the next 5 to 10 years. These talks will result in vicious cuts to the reimbursement rates. The government will be seen as the champions of cheap affordable health care while Alliance Boots will be seen a the knights in shinning armour by the general public, which will further strengthen their newfound position in the Irish consumers subconscious as a Pharmacy not just a cosmetics chain. What’s more in return for their noble concession for the good of Ireland's health Alliance healthcare will be granted a license to distribute and wholesale drugs in the Republic. Eventually Uniphar and United Drug will also feel the pinch as Alliance wrestles exclusive distribution rights for Phfizer and other branded lines. Due to the markets hunger for branded items and Alliances strong connections in the pharmaceutical industry they will quickly overtake Uniphar and United drug as the major wholesaler and eventually finish their operations in the Republic. Uniphar/ United drug will claim a monopoly situation has developed but the goverment will have sold out to Alliance Boots far to long ago to either want or in reailty have the ability to do anything about it.
No doubt Alliance/ Boots will take a temporary hit to their margins in the short to medium term but they will absorb it while other pharmacies that had been strong enough to survive the previous cuts will slowly slip into the red. Boots will then cherry pick these stores to their liking. At this stage the only survivors will be medium to large chains that Boots will be begrudgingly willing to live with; especially seeing as they will probably be making a handsome profit from their existence via their custom with Alliance.
Then Alliance Boots will begin to slowly increase their reimbursement rates and cash in on the delightful combination of the Irish medical professions curious aversion to generics and the Governments complete ineptitude when it comes negotiations with the pharmaceutical industry.
The real losers here will be the pharmacists. Here in the UK Boots are notorious among the profession as one of the worst if not the worst company to work for( apparently is a close call between Boots and Lloyds but that’s a topic for a different thread and perhaps a different forum). They will hire bitter uneducated retail staff as store managers to ram targets and customer surveys down the pharmacists’ throat. They will set up dispensaries whereby you dispense under the watchful gaze of the customer in order to increase efficiency (read: pressure). I could go on to talk about how they will reduce wages, reduce holidays, reduce the professions expectations but I'm going to stop here. In short Boots are the biggest threat to the profession in Ireland and you'd have to blind not too see the above scenario coming.

anotherlostie

Are you seriously suggesting that certain Phfizer (sic) drugs would be exclusively available in Boots stores?! I didn't read any further than that...

Delancey

many thanks for your detailed reply - stimulating stuff that gives food for thought.

amjon.

anotherlostie wrote: »

Are you seriously suggesting that certain Phfizer (sic) drugs would be exclusively available in Boots stores?! I didn't read any further than that...

No, just that Alliance healthcare will have an agreement with Phfizer that they will have exclusive rights to distribute their drugs in Ireland. They have an exclusivity agreement in the Uk. They supply to all pharmacies not just Boots.

2Scoops

Assuming your theory is correct, we should deprive pharm students of upgraded training facilities because...

amjon.

2Scoops wrote: »

Assuming your theory is correct, we should deprive pharm students of upgraded training facilities because...

We shouldn't. I was just pointing out their insidious presence in third level education and the start of their relationship the goverment.

0lddog

Cant be long till the Evelyn Waugh 'Boot of The Beast' character surfaces here

angeldelight

While I personally feel amjon may be a little radical in their views - in essence I would agree in that I feel the more Boots grows the worse it is for pharmacy in Ireland. My reasons for thinking that way are two fold (a) I've worked for them and no matter how much they say customer care is their focus, that's not how it felt when working for them. Numbers were the only important thing, I felt. (b) the scenario amjon has laid out before has happened to a certain extent in the UK already - single independent community pharmacies are a rarity.

anotherlostie

anotherlostie wrote: »

Are you seriously suggesting that certain Phfizer (sic) drugs would be exclusively available in Boots stores?! I didn't read any further than that...

...

amjon. wrote: »

No, just that Alliance healthcare will have an agreement with Phfizer that they will have exclusive rights to distribute their drugs in Ireland. They have an exclusivity agreement in the Uk. They supply to all pharmacies not just Boots.

You do know what (sic) means don't you?

donaghs

2Scoops wrote: »

Assuming your theory is correct, we should deprive pharm students of upgraded training facilities because...

As long as proper controls are in place to protect academic freedom, proper ethical behaviour, etc. But seeing the Boots name so prominently reminds me of the Simpsons Episode where Lisa gets married in the Future and visits her old school:

Troy: Now, turn to the next problem. If you have three Pepsis and drink one, how much more refreshed are you? You, the redhead in the Chicago school system?

Girl [her face appears picture-in-picture]: Pepsi?
Troy: Partial credit!