To think Pharmacies shouldn't shut for lunch anymore

[MrsBrie]

Hi,

It just seems so old fashioned and unnecessary and I don't see any argument for it. Yes, everyone is entitled to a lunch break - of course, but why does the entire pharmacy need to close? Can't they stagger the staff lunch breaks, like everywhere else?

It's not like it's not an important place? What about the people who need their prescriptions and can only pick it up in that hour? I suspect that's a lot of people.

Also, with GPs now really encouraging people to see their pharmacists first, this just seems even more unjustified.

Assuming it's not just me who thinks this?...

This here.

If only we could phone them to ask...

You wouldn't be happy here then, OP. Our (only) pharmacy closes for lunch and isn't open at all at the weekends. We just have to plan more, register with a pharmacy further afield or get prescriptions delivered.

My local pharmacy stays open but doesn't dispense over lunch. Still sells things that don't need a pharmacist. Closed Saturday and Sunday though.

Just waited 10 mins for our pharmacist to finish his lunch before dispensing - Lots of staff there but only one pharmacist.
He works really hard so definitely don’t begrudge him his lunch when he can grab it.

Some people don't like being told to come back. They kick off or will insist on wating.

A lot of people are not aware that it’s not simply prescriptions that can’t be given out when the pharmacist is not there (even if already bagged up) but also any medicine kept behind the counter that has a P in a square on the back of it. This covers a lot of seemingly mundane things which the staff are allowed to sell without consulting the pharmacist, as long as she or he is on the premises and working.

I had a Saturday job in a pharmacy decades ago. We stayed open when the pharmacist was out for lunch but we were much more limited in what we could sell.some people were fine about it but we did get aggro from others. Easier to avoid the aggro by shutting completely.

My local pharmacy is open from 8am until 11pm. If we go when the pharmacist is on a break we need to wait but some people don’t seem to understand that and kick off massively. It also causes a bit of a backlog in medications needing to be dispensed.

I often wish it would shut between certain times so it would give the staff a better break schedule and that way we would know what times to attend.

If they are run by diffeeent companies they are not going to nothing doing this

It saves people coming on Mumsnet complaining that they went to the Pharmacy and the assistant refused to sell them XYZ as the Pharmacist was on their lunchbreak.
How do you expect the Pharmacist to have their break if there's only one of them?

But most pharmacies only have one pharmacist so how do you suggest they get a break?.

Imagine the shit they'd get if they were open but couldn't hand over medications?
People are not always reasonable. They'll accept a closed for lunch sign far more easily than walking in to an open pharmacy and being told come back later.

They're all different companies through. It would be a bit weird for boots to phone up asda and say "when do you want to go for lunch?" It's not just the pharmacists themselves all the other staff would have to have lunch at the same time because, as explained they can't do much without the pharmacist being there.

Apart from which most people want their lunch at lunch time, not at 11am or half two so there's only so much staggering you can do.

Agree they should clearly have their opening hours accessible online though, no excuse to not do this in 2024.

As others have said ,the pharmacist is often the only one avaliable .Surely they deserve a break? I think one hour for lunch /rest is acceptable .

This!

This. I imagine most places only have one pharmacist as there’s a massive shortage.

The pharmacy is only closed when the pharmacist is on lunch. Everyone is entitled to a lunch break. The other staff stagger their lunch breaks. A pharmacist has to be present when prescriptions are dispensed.

I used to work as a pharmacy dispenser in a chain store that was open all day. The pharmacist would go on his lunch so the pharmacy counter would close but the wider store itself would remain open. I legally couldn't hand anything out and the abuse I got from people screaming at me to give them their prescriptions was unbelievable. I was threatened, had customers try to push past me and climb over/behind the counter. It was hell. Spare a thought for pharmacy staff who CANNOT give medication out but are forced to stay there anyway to sell OTC. Pharmacy work is intense, repetitive and mentally draining because if you mess up, you could potentially kill someone. Give them a break.

Ours stays open but you can't pick up prescriptions between 1.30 and 2.30 as that's when the pharmacist has lunch.

this ^ people would be arseholes to the remaining staff - its not worth the agro

My pharmacy used to close for an hour. They clearly acknkwledged that some people have to go at lunchtime so they would close 2-3 or 2.30 -3.30.

The shop would be open for limited goods to be sold (toiletries etc).and you could hand prescriptions in but then they stopped that. Recently they've obviously scheduled shifts differently so there's always a pharmacist there and they don't need to close.

No prescription meds can be given out when the pharmacist is not there sonits probably easier to shut than listen to people whinging about it.

The one I use stays open so you can buy stuff off the shelf but non OTC meds aren't available.

You don't want the person dishing out your medication to be hungry and unfocused.

My chemist doesn't dispense between 2-3pm, so tries to cater for the "lunchtime rush" mentioned above for those who only have one hour in the day the can collect their prescription.