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?...

Why don't YOU have your lunch at a different time, OP?

You think the pharmacist is being unreasonable having a lunch break at...well... lunchtime, but it's ok for other people?

All the local pharmacies do this - they just have a sign up in the window and/or at the counter telling you when the pharmacist is at lunch

Does it annoy you because you want to go to the pharmacy in your lunch break?

My large Boots shuts for an hour at lunch

I think even some of the bigger ones just can't get more hours covered. There's a real pharmacist shortage.

My village pharmacy has recently gone from closed for 30 minutes a day and being open 8.30-6 plus Saturday mornings to 9.30-5, closed 1-2.30, Wednesdays 9.30-1 only, and no weekend openings.
I have had to switch pharmacies, as it is impossible for anyone who works.

Ha! Where I live (rural), they sometimes have to share one pharmacist between two towns, so alternate opening mornings or afternoons.

Staff often get moaned at/abused when they stay open but can give out prescriptions because the pharmacist is on their break. I don’t blame them for closing completely.

Love that OP never bothered to come back to the thread to acknowledge they were completely uninformed.

Most pharmacists I know, simply don't take a lunch break (Ireland). It's a hugely pressured job, especially with the degree of medicine shortages at present.

As PPs have said, they can't dispense withiuba pharmacist.Of course the pharmacist needs a lunch break, but when I worked in a bank branch (a long long time ago) we knew the lunch period was our busiest so our lunch breaks were either 11am or 2pm. DS works in a coffee shop and they do the same, which makes sense to be available when most customers need them.

Pharmacists are a hot commodity and don't have to tolerate being expected to have lunch mid morning, though.

@EarringsandLipstick you love it? Really? And "never bothered" to come back? It's been a couple of hours 😶 It's almost like I had other things more important to do... Perhaps I was stuck in the lunch time backlog queue at my local pharmacy 😉

I never said that anyone should skip their lunch break. The opposite in fact is in my OP. I understand prescriptions can't be dispensed without a Pharmacist on duty, but they could keep the doors open and still sell in front of the counter items. As others have mentioned, there are super market Pharmacies which stay open all day and only have one Pharmacist.

Yeah. They aren't going to hire two pharmacist just so one can have lunch

My dad was a community pharmacist on a London council estate and growing up I worked many summers and Saturdays in his pharmacy.

I don’t think he took a proper lunch break. He was usually delivering oxygen cylinders, dragging them up & down the stairs in tower blocks where the lifts didn’t always work, or delivering prescriptions to elderly customers who couldn’t get out. Or catching up on the backlog of prescriptions.

Occasionally I’d stay in the pharmacy over lunch when it was closed, hidden at the back. Sometimes people would kick and hit the door or spit on the windows when they realised they pharmacy was shut!

They keep their doors open and people will be kicking off about why can't they get their medication now

Plus you do know that in other countries ( including those with less poverty ) all shops might shut for lunch and all day Sundays and half day mid week and the world doesn't fall apart

Others have also mentioned that when they do this, the staff who are covering and can't either sort prescriptions or sell some of the stock end up with loads of abuse.

Hence YABU.

But "in front of the counter" stuff is readily available at every supermarket and most larger corner shops. Why do you need a pharmacy at that exact time for something that doesn't need a Pharmacist?

@Vod well this is a good point, which I actually hadn't thought of. I forgot the general public can be utter arseholes.

Ah ok. Well, I think the general public often being utter arseholes is an explanation for a lot of things!

Either you want something that requires the pharmacist to be present (if you’re just dropping off a paper prescription and can’t get there conveniently then have it sent electronically), or if you really just want nappies or calpol or plasters then buy them at a regular shop. Or have your lunch break at some other point. Or go to a big supermarket pharmacy. Or get stuff delivered.

This is such a non problem for the vast majority of people- I will accept that there are people living very remotely who don’t have options, but most people can manage with a pharmacy that closes between 12:30-13:30. My GP surgery certainly closes for lunch daily!

The pharmacist has to be present to give out a lot of the meds, so when they are on break stuff does get delayed.

The whole shop shouldn't really be shut but I guess if you can't get your prescription it would just cause annoyance to be turned away when s/he's not there/ available.

One I know never seems to take a break, one always takes a full hour but at around 4pm. The latter is much less busy and do less CD scripts I think.
Ideally if they had 2 at each shop then it could be fully covered but they only legally need one so most don't have more.

They should really only take shorter breaks, maybe, but they do need some.

I’ve never heard of a pharmacy closing for lunch. They will say if the pharmacist is at lunch, though, and to come back or wait. But the pharmacy is always open.

I mens it just gives people another reason to move to online only shutting more pharmacies doesn’t it.

I get mine all delivered online. Lloyd’s have shut all their in person pharmacies.

I can go online pay £9 and have two months of the pill delivered in 48hours. I can online pay £170 and have a month of those fat drugs delivered all legit as it’s a registered online pharmacy. I can get off name thrush meds delivered cheaper than £16 online all by a legit place.

In person pharmacies will die out.

Easier to shut than explain for the millionth time that they can’t hand out prescriptions because the pharmacist isn’t there.
As others have said, there is a shortage of pharmacists.

'Controlled' drugs I don't think can be posted? Lots of people have those {Painkillers &c} Many drugs could be too risky to be posted out because of risk of diversion.
I don't think in person pharmacies will cease to exist for this reason.

Edit..I googled, and it seems they can be sent out via tracked and signed for delivery.