Would you be upset if you overheard a pharmacist complaining about the cost of your medication?

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Just as per the title really.

My daughter is diagnosed with social anxiety and takes anxiety medication prescribed by the Consultant Psychiatrist at CAMHS.

She also has a couple of other disabilities so we’ve had to fiddle a bit with different meds and different combinations of meds to find something that a) worked, b) didn’t negatively impact her other disabilities and c) she could manage the side effects.

Anyway, a few days ago I dropped DD’s prescription off and was waiting to pick one up for DH and I (along with everyone else) could hear the pharmacist ranting away about the cost of one of DD’s medications and how it was stuff like this that was crippling the NHS.

I just ignored it at the time, but DD has MH issues, her self esteem is pretty shitty so I think that if DD had overheard something like that it would have upset her and potentially impacted as to whether she actually took the meds/picked up prescriptions in the future.

Thanks!

Depends. But probably not. If the implication was that there was something inappropriate about getting medication (especially expensive medication) for anxiety, perhaps implying that it wasn't a "real" condition, then yes. If the rant was more just at drug companies taking advantage of the system and charging an excessive amount for some medication, then no.

I agree that some people might be upset and therefore they should be more careful!

Whether I'd be upset or not I think's it's unprofessional to rant in public! Behind closed doors only.

Oh, he can fuck right off with that. Has he not heard of biologics? They cost a shedload - and yet, for all their cost, they enable me to work (and earn considerably more than that) and not have to exist on benefits, which would be far more expensive.

Yes, I'd be a bit offended. 3 years ago, after a 2 week hospital stay with an infection in my brain and spinal cord, I had a follow up with the neurologist. He said it was a good job everyone didn't cost the NHS as much as I had!

That ^^
My meds are worth thousands
One is £40 once a week, Omalizumab is £500 a month, and that's just my injections

^This, absolutely.
It's a scandal that's going under the radar.
Pharmacies are not being paid the going rate for the drugs by the NHS (IE Government). This is why so many pharmacies are folding. The pharmacies are having to subsidise the difference in the cost of the drugs between the NHS payment and the pharmi companies.
It's a ticking time bomb. Loads of pharmacies are going to go out of business shortly. Of

I think they were really unprofessional!
I used to have HCG injections and the pharmacy had to call the doctor/secretary before I could have it because it was so costly 😵‍💫 ... not sure how much it was

Surely he's ranting about the profits pharmaceutical companies make, not suggesting your daughter is somehow draining the system? If it was me I'd probably agree with him!

I agree with this!

I think the pharmacist was having a dig at the big pharma companies that set ridiculous prices for medications. I wouldn't take it to heart, from how it sounds this was nothing personal against your daughter.

I think it's very understandable that you were upset. After my father died I returned his medicines to the pharmacy for safe disposal (there were quite a lot). I vividly remember the response of the pharamcist - tutting, rolling his eyes and telling his colleague what a waste of money - even though it was over twenty years ago.

YANBU. My son's cancer Drs and nurses feel free to remind me at every session how expensive each of the pills he has to take is.

I had one say, ‘Well that particular drug is very expensive!’ with disapproval when I asked for one of DSs medications. I managed to splutter something about perhaps it would have been better if the NHS had let him die of his brain tumour then. FFS, I hadn’t prescribed it and none of it was under my frickin control.

Very unprofessional, and I'd have said something

A lot of pharmacies are barely able to make money as some medicines are only repaid by the NHS at 80% of what the pharmacy paid for them, but the pharmacy in turn is capped on what they can charge you. This is why some people are finding it impossible to find even critical drugs they need.

So what! Shouldn't matter if they are frustrated.
They are professionals and should act like it.
We all pay tax and no one should be made to feel guilty or less than deserving by anyone for medication they need.
Pharmacists can say this stuff behind closed door on their lunch breaks where customers can't hear them

I had this with a pharmacist over DS medication. Every time I went to collect it he told me it cost over £200. I tried brushing the comments off, but he continued saying it. In the end I had to write a lettter of complaint, after that I was always dealt with by the store manager.

I would have a quiet word with the pharmacy and tell them that you overheard the comments and that although you know they weren’t directed at the patient, they need to be aware that the comments could have impacted your daughter to the point where she would have stopped the meds. The comments should be directed at the pharmaceutical companies who are gouging the NHS

This is exactly right. And on top of this, in one way or another when you purchase medicine you are vulnerable.
maybe you’re a person like OP who has a daughter struggling with anxiety, or you have tonsillitis, or migraines like another PP. Whatever it is you are going to the pharmacist for help and it isn’t ok for them to speak about their personal feelings in earshot of customers.

People are being sympathetic because we all know drug companies DO have massive mark ups but would everyone be so easy on them if it was a waiter complaining about how their customer’s chosen meal was causing restaurants to go out of business, or a taxi driver grumbling about fares as you drove off. No. You’d think they need to employ better customer service.

OP clearly this has upset you - just wondering, are you feeling bad that you didn’t stand up” for your daughter or something? It’s easy to feel very protective of our kids especially when they’re struggling. But saying something wouldn’t have changed anything. If they’re part of a larger chain you could consider complaining. (Maybe this isn’t the case obviously just wondering if it’s more than just the rudeness?)

Thanks all!

I am somewhat sympathetic to the pharmacist - it’s actually a huge chain rather than a small, independent pharmacy, but I am also annoyed by the unprofessionalism he showed.

I appreciate that the rant probably wasn’t directed at my daughter, but it’s the kind of rant you have behind closed doors. Not loudly, behind a shoulder height screen, in front of a queue of other customers.

Aside from my daughter, any one of the other customers in there could have been feeling vulnerable, struggling with their mental health, etc.

It would have made DD feel like a burden and having spent the last 3 years trying to put her back together, it’s a bit of a red rag to bull for me.

I am going to write and complain

I think lnowing what medicines cost would sometimes be a good thing.

depending on the kind of medicines it can be pennies or millions for a course of treatment.

however, your dd needs her medication and you should not feel bad about it. I'm sure you would rather she didn't need them.

and some medicines are so expensive because developing, licensing and manufacturing is expensive.
plus quality control means that small mistakes can mean a ruined batch that can't be used.
and yes there is a large mark up.

I’d have said something like, ‘blame the drugs companies, not the patients.’

Just to let them know you’d heard. It probably wasn’t personally aimed at your daughter.

Pharmacies are dispensing at a loss, because they are not being reimbursed the full costs of some drugs. There was a report on BBC breakfast a couple of weeks ago about this, and some pharmacies are struggling as a result. As an example, they gave a standard Ventolin inhaler. The cheapest, sourced from the drug company, is £44.50, for which the pharmacy is only reimbursed £40.

The same issue is having a knock on effect on some groups of patients too. I’m a stoma patient and my prescriptions are provided through my GP to a healthcare company to source and deliver. Some products are not reimbursed at their actual cost, so it’s the surgeries who are losing out.

After 55 years of routinely ordering what I need, within the last year, monthly prescription orders I have placed have either been delayed or cancelled by the meds manager and I am repeatedly questioned as to how much product I have left and the reasons for ordering specific amounts. Specialist stoma skincare products are now restricted to the cheapest available, resulting in my having to source and buy my own because of allergies. The meds manager at our surgery is admin, not medical and despite several conversations , doesn’t seem to understand that these are things I can’t do without, and that delays and cancellations have consequences for me.

I’m a member of a regional stoma group and everyone I talk to is having the same problem, and some surgeries have even tried to limit the amount of products patients can order on a monthly basis, which doesn’t work, for obvious reasons. Something has to give if things don’t change, and ultimately the patient will be the loser.