Fuming at Pharmacist

[Havannah80]

My DD is on medicated milk (on perscription) because she has stomach problems.

And I have just found out that a girl who works at the pharmacy I get it from has told her partner who works with DD father that I get this milk on prescription for DD and that I must be on benefits if I'm getting free milk (clearly looking down at me) it's now gone round my DD fathers work and got back to him which is how I know it's been said!

Now my problem isn't really if she thinks I'm on benefits or not. It's more that I feel there's a breach of confidentiality here?! I don't need people knowing the ins and outs of my life such as what medicine my DD is prescribed!!

AIBU if I ring up the chemist she works at and complain?!

Don’t ring up.

Send a formal letter to the HO of this pharmacy. It needs to be taken seriously. It’s a total breach of confidentiality and her doing that could cause you or other people serious problems.

She needs to have a formal warning, if not instant dismissal.

Change the pharmacy you use, or, do it online - the doctor emails the prescription, they deliver it free to your house via Royal Mail.
Just rise above it. The more you get wound up by petty minded individuals, the less quality time you will have with DD. As you cannot 100% prove it was this girl, you cannot really complain. I would say, what a pitiful life these people live if having a prescription for medicated milk is newsworthy! Some people have nothing better to do.

Why are you fuming at the Pharmacist - sounds like this was a non-dispensary staff member as all dispensary staff members would know the reason your child was prescribed milk. It is certainly worthy of a complaint, but I doubt this is the fault of the pharmacist.

Poster not boss-of-the-world

It is woman not girl. It's called a dictionary, try one sometime.

Lithiumsmummy - you do realise the pharmacy you are referring to was fined for selling patient data and they also failed to deliver meds to 1000s of patients over Christmas 2016.

I see at least one patient every weekend who is without medication as a result of non-delivery by this pharmacy.

It is woman not girl. It's called a dictionary, try one sometime.

en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/girl
"1. A female child

1. A young or relatively young woman"

It's called a dictionary, try one sometime.

Has your DD's father specifically said that his work mate told him you were receiving milk and that he knew because his girlfriend had told him so?

Assuming the woman concerned is not the pharmacist but the cashier / assistant who just processes the sale, there may not have been any "confidentiality" to break - any more than if she worked in Tesco and told her OH that she saw you buying something. That's not to say that a letter of complaint isn't justified, just the wording and outline of the complaint will be different.

read it all....
sometimes offensive : a single or married woman of any age

I would complain. I would also recommend you do so in writing and not by phone. How did your DD's dad react?

I'm glad you weren't getting medication for an STD or something. If she can't stop herself from gossiping about medicated milk and the possibility you're in my benefits, I'm sure she would struggle to keep more sensitive matters to herself.

I'm pretty sure that prescriptions come under the Data Protection act and therefore are to be treated as private matters between customer and pharmacist. I went to school with a girl who did work experience in a pharmacy and disclosed some information about another student. Police were called and she was let off with a warning.
You wouldn't want a doctor or counsellor discussing details about your life with every tom, dick, and harry who came through the door. I would be fuming like you.

There are several are there not?
I know I am lucky in that there are 5 pharmacies within a 5 minute walk of where I live. You can take your prescriptions anywhere, if you don't want it sent via post, go to another one where they don't know you. Get someone else to collect it for you. Life is too short to get wound up about something so pointless.

I wouldn't get any prescriptions delivered there again.

I work in a pharmacy, as a counter assistant.

Discretion, confidentiality and lack of predilection to gossip are prerequisites for the job.

I would write to the pharmacy manager outlining your complaint - What was said,
by whom,
when.

It will be investigated and should the woman be found to have breeched patient confidentiality, she would be disciplined.

However. "he said, she said, they said, she said" would not be taken as evidence of a breech.

So what did the pharmacist do wrong...?

It's fairly obvious, isn't it? Pharmacists have to take responsibility for the conduct of their staff, and must train them in duties of confidentiality and data protection.

Absolutely complain. It is a breach of privacy. I think the pharmacist and/or manager will be horrified. I think that the shop need to review their procedures to make sure staff know about confidentiality (possible they just assumed as I think it seems obvious to most of us).

It's fairly obvious, isn't it? Pharmacists have to take responsibility for the conduct of their staff, and must train them in duties of confidentiality and data protection.

The pharmacist isn't necessarily responsible in this situation as the staff aren't necessarily "their staff". It depends on whether they are a manager or locum. The manager/owner should have procedures in place though.

My relatives had a pharmacy years ago, and I frequently helped out, after being warned about gossiping (in the days before formal confidentiality laws).

Given the choice, I don't use any local pharmacy, and just as well, as I've experienced "joking" in a full shop by the pharmacist's wife on the subject of my contraceptives, as I didn't buy anything there.

At the present local pharmacy, the new assistant was being told something in a low voice by the old one, and going by their shocked silence when they saw me, I guessed I was the subject, and moved my custom a couple of miles away. I did hear later that someone at that shop had been fired for gossiping, and I'm sure I wouldn't have been the only one.

I do have reasons for not using the on=line system as mentioned earlier, particularly as I do appreciate being able to phone a pharmacy for information, and also to drop in without an appointment for the flu jab, so at present I'm happy to travel for prescriptions, or have them delivered from the pharmacy, of course.

FluffyHippo - what a horible comment.

Forgot to mention - I wouldn't bother making a complaint about the assistant mentioned on this thread, as no doubt someone else will eventually.

How has this gone around the office? If someone told me this I don’t think I could even find the inclination to respond, let alone pass it on as if it is juicy gossip .

You could just get a life instead, you revolting snob.

snob?

Fluffhippo how does reporting someone for breaching data protection make them a revolting snob? Weird view.

Pharmacist here. If what you have said is true, the person in question did breach patient confidentiality and Information Governance. All staff are required to be trained on the subject regularly and should have signed confidentiality agreements to confirm this and outline their understanding of the seriousness of the offence if confidentiality is breached.

Put your complaint in writing, addressed to the Pharmacist and Information Governance Lead so that it can be investigated. If the pharmacy is part of a chain then write to their head office.

In terms of being furious at the Pharmacist, unless they were the one who breached confidentiality then there isn’t not a lot they’ve can be faulted for unless they are the Information Governance Lead and haven’t trained the staff appropriately. They cannot possibly be aware of conversations that go on outside of work between a husband and wife, however if they were made aware at any point then they should take action appropriately.

Lastly, please do not switch to one of the “Internet Pharmacies” as a pp said, they were indeed fined for selling patient data, failed deliveries causing problems for thousands of patients, are completely impersonal with no chance for consultations with a regular neighbourhood pharmacist and I believe are currently under another investigation from the GPhC.

Hope this gets resolved for you.