Would you complain or is it not worth it?

[SuzyQ76]

The night before last, we found out my son (8) had worms.
Yesterday, on my way to do a 12 hour shift I popped to my local pharmacy which is inside a supermarket to get him some medicine.
There was quite a queue, maybe 8 people, but because I was running late (roadworks outside the shop) I didn’t have time to go anywhere else, so I waited.
When it was my turn, I said “Can I please have some Ovex?” The woman said “What’s it for?”
I said “It’s fine, I know what it’s for. Can I have it please?”
She said “Not until you tell me what you want it for.”
I said “My son has worms.”
She said “Speak up, I can’t hear you.”
So I said it again, louder, in front of several customers.
Then it turned out the prices were all wrong, so I couldn’t afford the family pack (£12, only had a tenner in my account).
I said “Can I have the single dose, please?”
She said “No, you have to treat the whole family.”
I said “I can’t afford to treat the whole family, do you have a generic version.”
Her response “We’re not Boots. If you want the generic version, you should go to a chemist. This is a pharmacy, dear.”
So I said I would take the single dose.
She said “Well, technically I’m not allowed to sell you it because you have disclosed that you don’t live alone, but it’s up to you.” (Disclosed! Like she's the bloody FBI or something).
I said “Well, it’s all I can afford, so I’ll take it please.”
She said “Well, on your head be it.”
Then she rang it through and it was nearly a pound more than it was marked at so I had to transfer more money. I said “Excuse me one second.” She said “Well, do you want this or not?” I said I did and she said “Well, I think you’ll be back soon enough but I can’t make you buy the multipack.”

I left feeling utterly humiliated but I didn’t have time to go elsewhere and my son had asked me not to tell my dad (his grandad) who picked him up. I also didn’t have time to tell the manager and by the time I finished work they were closed.

I usually don’t complain about poor service because you never know another person’s story but it was over 24 hours ago and I’m still annoyed. Is it worth complaining? Does anyone even acknowledge complaints these days?

Why was she so insistent that I told her what it was for? Are people out there mainlining Ovex at nearly £6 a pop or what?

Exactly

I mean, there are people on this thread admitting to not knowing there was a difference between a chemist and a pharmacy.

People aren't always right in what they think they know.

The OP might have known what this medication was for and asked for it correctly. But, equally, she might not.

I’m confused. You said you only had a tenner in your account, it came to nearly £6 but you had to go back at start transferring money at the till with a queue behind you still? Why would you need to do this and why on earth if you know you’re about to pay for something would you not have the money in the correct account.

Based on this alone I think you were unreasonable. You cannot complain about being late when you are doing things like this. Also, she has to ask what you want it for, thats her job.

I absolutely would complain. Manners cost nothing.

I think you need to be over the sensitive use. It wasn't for you, according to your OP. You're a mum. You gave birth. Kids sometimes get worms. You don't need to be embarrassed because I doubt anyone else queuing up for help cared. Most minor illnesses treated at the pharmacy can slightly unpleasant.

You were obviously already hassled, and that's probably why you tried to brush her off rather than asking for a confidential consultation. But you can't do that if you want them to trust you and feel satisfied they've met their requirements, because it's regulated.

You've also said since I first replied that you feel she judged you for not being able to afford a large pack for everyone. That sounds more like you were embarrassed yourself and feared this than she actively treated you in a demeaning way.

I remember buying the morning after pill and a pharmacist being horrible about it, and it sounded similar to this.
You just know when it feels wrong.

100% this unless you spend time with the general public on a daily basis you will not believe the level of stupid and full grown adults who will truly believe anything they read or see on the Internet. I could write a post on here saying how squeezing lemon into my eye while standing on one leg cause me to lose 5 stone in a week and some people would believe it and do it

Absolutely agree with this, and would further add that they expect the people doing the selling to take responsibility and concequences should anything go wrong with them getting what they demand, because 'The customer is always right' seems to translate to 'The staff are always wrong' for some people.

OP was stressed and embarrassed - that's totally valid, but she's trying to blame someone else for making her feel that way, it's very common, because service staff are easy targets, the whole 'but the staff were rude' is like a trump card played when all other avenues are exhausted.

Little wonder we are struggling with recruiting and retaining customer service staff.

Worms are very common in children, I wouldn’t say they’re particularly ‘sensitive.’ I also think it’s really bad that you haven’t told your dad, if he’s picking your son up presumably he is in regular contact and might need to treat himself or at least look out for the symptoms of an infection himself. Sounds like you’ve made this out to be a sensitive, embarrassing topic to your son instead of reassuring him it’s quite common and nothing to be embarrassed about.

Because, when you literally have £10 in your account, you wait until the last minute to transfer money, because things like bank charges can go out automatically and leave you with not enough money to pay for what you need.

Exactly my point. I swear I wasn’t rude to her, just a bit frazzled, but she was rude from the start.

I LITERALLY do. I’m never rude like she was though.

Totally agree, there’s no need to make someone discuss sensitive information publicly and at volume.

When I was on MH meds my pharmacist once declared what was on my prescription, to the whole shop. “Sads tablets for Mrs Sleepless?” Like. My name would have done. I know what prescription I put in.

Another had a 5min argument with me about the purpose of Night Nurse, when that genuinely was not what I asked for.

Totally see your point. Sometimes you don’t want to tell the whole of Tesco that your son has worms and you can’t afford all of the medication ever, a bit of sensitivity wouldn’t have gone amiss.

She was rude. Ignore the apologists in here. There’s a whole section on MN who seem to think customer facing workers should be able to talk to people however they wish and you just have to accept it.🙄. I speak to pharmacists all the time as I have chronic illness, they all seem to be able to explain their job and the rules they have to follow without being rude so I’m sure this woman could have managed it.

For future reference, most pharmacies have a private room they can take you into if you want to discuss something privately so do ask for that in future. Just ask to speak to the pharmacist privately when you get your the counter.

Also I know the difference between a chemist and a pharmacy. I’m not sure why it means they wouldn’t stock generics though. I often get generics in my local pharmacy. That sounds like she doesn’t understand the difference.

OP didn't have time to 'tell the manager' what had happened, so I doubt she had time to be taken into a private room to discuss in depth. She just needed to say it in one sentence, to one professional, the first time she was asked.

Agree, she embarrassed op when she could have handled this much better.