Nov. 13/05

The last of my 10 day antibiotic course was choked down last night and I do not have much use anymore for the 2 inhalers that I was also prescribed 10 days ago. My mom has many of the same symptoms so I am saving the inhalers in case she needs them. Yeah, I know, I am going against the advice that I give people all of the time about sharing medication! Besides the lack of energy and the fever, the worst of the bronchitis had to have been the incessant cough. For a few days there, I coughed around the clock despite the puffers and the hit of codeine cough syrup that I would take before going to bed.

I just remembered the pharmacy story that I wanted to share this week. One of the things that irritate me the most at my pharmacy is that people feel free to lean over the vitamins and ask me questions while I am filling prescriptions. It is like they totally forget in their rush to have THEIR question addressed that I might be doing something like filling prescriptions if my head is down. One lady did that to me the other day and then she got annoyed with me because I made her wait until I was done the prescription for a customer who was waiting and then came out of the pharmacy to address her question. She wanted to talk to me over the vitamin shelves even though she was not even as tall as the shelving and I could not talk loudly because of the bronchitis. Then, she asked me a question about one vitamin and before I could spit out more than a word or two in answer, she waved an herbal product in front of me and asked a question about that. My poor exhausted brain could not handle it and my lack of sleep had made me irritable so I stopped and asked her what she was asking me about because they were questions about 2 completely different things. Every time I tried to answer her questions, she kept talking and repeating herself until I finally said, "Look! Here are your options. You decide." and I walked away because I had to cough. I know on one level that it is not good customer service, but I refuse to let the customers run roughshod over me because they feel a sense of entitlement as the customer. They would not appreciate the attitude in return if I behaved in the same manner towards them in their work place.