topic Re: Way too much communication... in Community Chat

Way too much communication...

151949 — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 11:59:53 GMT

in our society today. I needed Rx refills. I went on line and put in the Rx # at walgreens site. It immediately told me they will be ready for pickup tomorrow after 11AM. Fine. So far I have gotten 3 e mails and a text to tell me they have received the request for a refill and I'm absolutely certain as soon as they are filled it will generate several more e mails and texts to tell me that. I like the convenience and all of doing things electronically but Geez Louise - do I really need to be informed of each step along the way numerous times?

Re: Way too much communication...

151949 — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 12:03:24 GMT

And Heaven help you if they deem you need a refill but you don't get it. For instance my doctor has changed a lot of my meds so I have Rx in there that I am no longer using. I get text after text after text to get them filled. I finally went to the drugstore and had a sit down with the pharmacist to get straight with the computer what my current Rx were.

Re: Way too much communication...

sam96 — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 12:10:06 GMT

Wow...that is a bit excessive!

I use CVS, and I got a text asking if I wanted to refill one of mine that I'd forgotten to put on auto. I replied yes, I got 1 text confirming and 1 text when it was ready.

Just out of curiosity I looked at my communication preferences before posting and I have both email and text reminders.

You are right...I wouldn't want that many! It would drive me nuts.

Re: Way too much communication...

sam96 — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 12:12:24 GMT

@151949 wrote:
And Heaven help you if they deem you need a refill but you don't get it. For instance my doctor has changed a lot of my meds so I have Rx in there that I am no longer using. I get text after text after text to get them filled. I finally went to the drugstore and had a sit down with the pharmacist to get straight with the computer what my current Rx were.

I have a place online in my CVS where I can archive any Rx that I'm no longer taking but still have refills, for that same reason, so I won't get a text reminder. Love that feature! 👍

Re: Way too much communication...

Cakers3 — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 12:43:01 GMT

@151949 wrote:
And Heaven help you if they deem you need a refill but you don't get it. For instance my doctor has changed a lot of my meds so I have Rx in there that I am no longer using. I get text after text after text to get them filled. I finally went to the drugstore and had a sit down with the pharmacist to get straight with the computer what my current Rx were.

Well how in the world is the pharmacy supposed to know that you didn't need the older scripts? It's common sense for the pharmacy to follow-up if refills are still available.

It's not their responsibility to determine if a script is not needed.

Many people, especially the elderly, forget to take their prescribed meds as it is; a reminder from the pharmacy would at least keep them aware.

This is really not a big deal in life's overall picture. jmoymmv

Re: Way too much communication...

deeva — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 12:47:31 GMT

That's why I have resisted having my pharmacy text me.

But what irritates me is that when I phone in a script and the pharmacy doesn't have the entire quantity of meds, they never call to tell me that. I get the surprise when I go to pick up the script. So now, I have to make two trips to pick up one script.

Re: Way too much communication...

151949 — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 12:55:42 GMT

@deeva wrote:
That's why I have resisted having my pharmacy text me.
But what irritates me is that when I phone in a script and the pharmacy doesn't have the entire quantity of meds, they never call to tell me that. I get the surprise when I go to pick up the script. So now, I have to make two trips to pick up one script.

I hate when they do that too. The Walgreens in the small town where our camp is does that a lot, so I go to one further away but that is much more efficient at getting it done the first time.

Re: Way too much communication...

Burnsite — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 12:56:32 GMT

I had a situation with a pharmacy once (it was Caremark, the CVS mail-order branch) that ended with their emailing my primary care doctor that I was not taking my medicine.

I was trying to get them to stop sending the generic (which did not work at all for me) and send me instead the brand name (which works perfectly). They kept saying OK and then sending the generic. I would send it back, call, stay on hold, etc. and think it was cleared up but the process began again at every refill.

Then they started hassling the doctor even though he has been writing "medically necessary" on his script for the proprietary version. Yikes.

Re: Way too much communication...

151949 — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 13:00:07 GMT

@Cakers3 wrote:
@151949 wrote:
And Heaven help you if they deem you need a refill but you don't get it. For instance my doctor has changed a lot of my meds so I have Rx in there that I am no longer using. I get text after text after text to get them filled. I finally went to the drugstore and had a sit down with the pharmacist to get straight with the computer what my current Rx were.
Well how in the world is the pharmacy supposed to know that you didn't need the older scripts? It's common sense for the pharmacy to follow-up if refills are still available.
It's not their responsibility to determine if a script is not needed.

Many people, especially the elderly, forget to take their prescribed meds as it is; a reminder from the pharmacy would at least keep them aware.

This is really not a big deal in life's overall picture. jmoymmv

I did not mind going through the drugs with them to get things straight but the pharmacist made me make an appointment and go to the store to go over these with him in person instead of just doing it on the phone and that irritated me. Isn't it common sense that if you now have a Rx for 2 new BP meds, and you are saying you don't need the previous meds , that you are correct, and the doctor has changed your Rx?

Re: Way too much communication...

qualitygal — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 13:02:57 GMT

@151949 wrote:
in our society today. I needed Rx refills. I went on line and put in the Rx # at walgreens site. It immediately told me they will be ready for pickup tomorrow after 11AM. Fine. So far I have gotten 3 e mails and a text to tell me they have received the request for a refill and I'm absolutely certain as soon as they are filled it will generate several more e mails and texts to tell me that. I like the convenience and all of doing things electronically but Geez Louise - do I really need to be informed of each step along the way numerous times?

Feel the LOVE.

Re: Way too much communication...

brii — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 13:05:49 GMT

Sometimes you just can't win.

You complain if there's too much communication, and you'd complain if there wasn't any communication.

Re: Way too much communication...

Peaches McPhee — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 13:13:05 GMT

My dentist office does this, or did. They'd call or send emails multiple times to remind me of appointments. I asked them to STOP! They did. (At least for me.)

Re: Way too much communication...

stevieb — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 13:21:08 GMT

@deeva wrote:
That's why I have resisted having my pharmacy text me.
But what irritates me is that when I phone in a script and the pharmacy doesn't have the entire quantity of meds, they never call to tell me that. I get the surprise when I go to pick up the script. So now, I have to make two trips to pick up one script.

So true, and for older folks for whom getting around is a challenge, like my mother, this is more than a mere annoyance. It also seems to be increasingly the norm. You either wait for days for a medication to come it or they give a few days supply and then think it's acceptable for you to have to come back to get the full prescription.

Re: Way too much communication...

Susan-QVC — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 13:39:00 GMT

This post has been removed by QVC because the comments are rude and not necessary.

Re: Way too much communication...

151949 — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 13:42:36 GMT

I wonder if this has to do with the financial stability of the drug store. If they only keep a few in stock their financial outlay is low, then when you bring in your Rx to be filled they order the full amount, knowing they will be paid before they have to pay out for what they got. It seems some drug stores can easily fill total quantities of a Rx right away and others you always have to go back.

Re: Way too much communication...

Yankee2000 — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 13:44:00 GMT

@Cakers3 wrote:
@151949 wrote:
And Heaven help you if they deem you need a refill but you don't get it. For instance my doctor has changed a lot of my meds so I have Rx in there that I am no longer using. I get text after text after text to get them filled. I finally went to the drugstore and had a sit down with the pharmacist to get straight with the computer what my current Rx were.
Well how in the world is the pharmacy supposed to know that you didn't need the older scripts? It's common sense for the pharmacy to follow-up if refills are still available.
It's not their responsibility to determine if a script is not needed.

Many people, especially the elderly, forget to take their prescribed meds as it is; a reminder from the pharmacy would at least keep them aware.

This is really not a big deal in life's overall picture. jmoymmv

I agree Cakers, it is the patients responsibility to keep the pharmacy in the loop if your medication changes.

Re: Way too much communication...

Kim-QVC — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 13:51:05 GMT

This post has been removed by QVC because contains unkind meme.

Re: Way too much communication...

wildcat fan — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 13:58:59 GMT

The last time I used the automated phone line at Walgreens, it gave me an estimated pick up time. I went two hours after that pick up time, and my prescription wasn't ready! Since then, I've gone in person to get refills. They are usually busy, and it tends to take a while to get scripts filled.

Re: Way too much communication...

Bird mama — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 14:17:01 GMT

My pharmacy doesn't know I have a phone that can text (lol). I have one RX that is filled every 90 days and I call it in and never hear a thing.

One thing that was different for me this year, from a texting perspective was that one day, about a week before my periodic dental cleaning I received a text about my appointment. I looked at it and said, who is this and what's the chuck is going on? So I responded yest. A couple of days later I get another reminder, I responded yes. I then followed up with a phone call because my appointment card showed one time and each text showed 1/2 hour later than the appointment card. I told the girl I at the dental office that I guess we were all lucky I bought a smart phone this year and finally got a data plan for texting otherwise on my old phone - I had ATT block texts because I didn't have a data plan.

She said, oh, yes this is new and you can opt out if you want. I didn't opt out but I couldn't help but wonder if it would have killed the office to contact patients and advise us of the text capability before assumming.

Re: Way too much communication...

italia8140 — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 18:05:14 GMT

@qualitygal wrote:
@151949 wrote:
in our society today. I needed Rx refills. I went on line and put in the Rx # at walgreens site. It immediately told me they will be ready for pickup tomorrow after 11AM. Fine. So far I have gotten 3 e mails and a text to tell me they have received the request for a refill and I'm absolutely certain as soon as they are filled it will generate several more e mails and texts to tell me that. I like the convenience and all of doing things electronically but Geez Louise - do I really need to be informed of each step along the way numerous times?
Feel the LOVE.

GOOD ONE!!!