Wellness

[SilleeMee]

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@Greeneyedlady21 wrote:

A pharmacist doesn't prescribe, a doctor does. If a pharmacist wants to prescribe he or she should get an MD.

I don't even trust what most doctors say and know about medications, so why would I think a pharmacist has any right to suggest meds? I think that's way out of line, but nothing surprises me anymore. Three plus years of taking care of my mother, I've seen it all.

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Pharmacist can prescribe drugs. But the type of drugs is limited as well as what state will allow such actions.  

[Q4u]

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@SilleeMee wrote:

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@Q4u wrote:

WHAT MAKES THIS PERSON AT WALGREENS THINK HE/SHE IS A DOCTOR???

A pharmacist is NOT a doctor!!.  I'm on Metformin and have been for 11 years.  I can't take a Statin.  I've tried three of them even tho my numbers are ok... and they nearly crippled me.  I'm NOT about to argue with a highly educated pill distributor/dispenser.... but I think they are definitely not for everyone. I'll save my personal information and discussions for my DOCTOR and let my DOCTOR discuss her decisions with ME.

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FYI - Pharmacists are doctors. they have a professional doctorate in pharmacy.

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I do know that Pharmacists have a doctorate in pharmacy, BUT they do NOT have the degrees (and residency) required to practice medicine.  That was my point.  There are tons of Doctorates out there in many ,many fields which allow us to call the person "Doctor".... but not to practice medicine. 

[Zhills]

Same reaction when her Doctor informed her she was pre-diabetic!

[VaBelle35]

There's a place for pharmacists in my care team.  They have many times questioned a medication due to an allergy I have or a conflict with something else I take.

I have been using Walgreens for a number of years now since they are in my pharmacy network as a preferred pharmacy and give even deeper discounts.  I think the pharmacists at Walgreens are empowered to be assertive when your doctor or doctors are prescribing things that are questionable or harmful.  And I appreciate that.

I just think this particular pharmacist stepped over the line.  Yes he is looking out for your best interests and health, but I just think he went about it in a very odd way.

[VaBelle35]

My philosophy is that everyone needs to stay in their own lane.  Specialists need to stick with their region of the body, pharmacists need to stick to the medications and interactions and doctors need to treat the person and insurance companies need to put health above the almighty dollar.

These days, a doctor gets most (if not all) of their pharmaceutical information from the pharmaceutical companies.

Pharmacists understand the chemistry behind the medications.

One time I was having an allergic reaction to a medication that I had taken before, but from a different manufacturer.  The pharmacists drew a little chemistry diagram for me explaining where the link was that I was allergic to.  While I didn't understand a thing he said, he was very detailed in his explanation to the nurse at my doctor's office and the two of them agreed on a medication change.  The doctor wasn't involved at all since it wasn't a controlled substance.

[loveschocolate]

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@151949 wrote:

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@loveschocolate wrote:

In 2017, the American Diabetes Association recommended that all people with diabetes take statins. Their reasoning is that controlling risk factors will help lower your overall risk for developing heart disease. These risk factors may include:

high cholesterol

high blood pressure

being overweight or obese

smoking

a high level of sodium in your diet

a low level of physical activity

The fewer risk factors you have, the better your odds of avoiding a heart attack or stroke.

Diabetes is a threat to your cardiovascular health partly because the extra glucose in your blood can injure your blood vessels. When your blood vessels are damaged, blood flow to the heart and brain can be disrupted. This raises the risk of a heart attack or stroke.

Diabetes can also affect your cholesterol by lowering high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or “good” cholesterol, and raising levels of LDL cholesterol. This is called diabetic dyslipidemia. It can occur even if diabetes is controlled.

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All my numbers are within the normal range. I don't need some drug whose most common side effect is muscle pain on top of my arthritic joint pain. You can do what youb and your doctor think is best - and I'll decide for myself. AND BTW - my doctor hasn't said anything about this.

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@151949, as I said in my FIRST post, you said NO and to move on. My second post was just GUIDLINES from the American Diabetes Association. Do what you want. No need to get defensive. Good grief. Another day, another endless rant. 

[loveschocolate]

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@StephaniM wrote:

I’d call my doc and explain what happened.  Ask his/her opinion on adding the statin.  I’m certain the pharmacist was acting in your best interest.

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@StephaniM, exactly!

[Cakers3]

I don't understand what the big deal is about this-other than this incident has shown up on a diabetes help site. 

The same situation-the pharmacist only recommended, not prescribed.

So I guess it's a common incident-and not a whoop do. 

[VaBelle35]

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@Cakers3 wrote:

I don't understand what the big deal is about this-other than this incident has shown up on a diabetes help site. 

The same situation-the pharmacist only recommended, not prescribed.

So I guess it's a common incident-and not a whoop do. 

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That's interesting.  If I were a doctor, I would be annoyed that Walgreens is asserting themselves in patient care like this.

As a patient, I would be annoyed if they did anything other than say "hey, we want you know about this.  Here's a sheet of paper to talk to your doctor about."

[blackhole99]

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@151949 wrote:

And if it were true that you did need statins when your a diabetic - at the point you hit 75 years old you no longer matter.

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Unfortunately, that's right. My aunt is 83 and her doctor gives her anything she wants and if she doesn't want to take her cholesterol med. the doc doesn't have a problem with it. Yes, her cholesterol is normal, but she doesn't eat much of anything, yet her triglycerides are not normal. She can hardly walk and is in pain due to bad knees and the doc will not recommend surgery because of her age. My husband had his first colonoscopy at 75 and had 6 polyps removed, no cancer thank goodness. The surgeon will only do a colonoscopy in 3 years if he's still in good health. The risk of anesthesia for someone who is not in the best of health at that age poses more of a risk than it's worth. Of course an emergency is a different story.