Choose a pharmacy
It seems today there is a pharmacy on every corner. There are large ones owned by big corporations, some are inside of grocery stores and there are small ones owned by independents. Each have their advantages and disadvantages. All have the medicines that are regularly prescribed and each have access to items that are not so prevalent. It all depends on the main things of importance to each individual.
The first thought is location. Your regular pharmacy should be close to your home, work or school. These criteria can be overlooked if the pharmacy of your choice delivers. If you travel a great deal it might be useful to use a large chain that can fill your prescription while you’re on the road.
The next critical decision lies in their hours of operation. That is one of the advantages of the big chains — they often are open 24 hours, but how often is it that you use a pharmacy late at night? Look for a pharmacy with hours that are convenient for your situation.
Drug coverage is another important factor. It is imperative these days to be sure the pharmacy accepts your insurance. Also, with Medicare Part D coverage, each year the plans change and it is of extreme importance that you review your plan each year. Find a drugstore willing to research the plans with you to be sure you get the best plan for your individual medication regimen.
Another item to consider is “price.” There are always medications that are not covered by insurances. This is one area the independents may have an edge. In the chains, the prices are set by the corporations and the actual cost of the medications may not even be seen by the pharmacists. They have little or no leeway in the price their computer sets for them. An independent knows exactly what their cost is and can base a price on that. Calling around for a price on a medication is done on a regular basis and you might be surprised at the discrepancy in price from a chain store to a small independent.
Last but not least is service. Customer service used to be second to nothing, but as the stores have gotten larger, customer service has suffered. Once again, an independent is typically much better at this than a chain. Normal wait time with an independent is 15 to 20 minutes, compared to all too often two hours with larger stores. When a patient is not feeling well and is told to return in an hour or so only to find that after that wait the prescription is still not ready, it can be quite vexing.
Quite often, the pharmacist of the independent is also the owner or co-owner and has a vested interest in your leaving the pharmacy happy and content. Not only the pharmacist but the technicians and cashiers often will remember who you are if you are a regular customer. Due to being small, the employees of these stores have the opportunity to interact with the customers and knowing more about you makes it easier to monitor your overall health situation.
The pharmacists are better situated to be able to spend the time necessary to interact personally with you and to remember your drug regimen and better able to watch for harmful drug interactions when prescribed new medications. When you make your choice of pharmacies, if the pharmacist is located behind a sheet of glass or is two counters back from the customer, this is often by design to keep the pharmacist from being “distracted” by customers. Customer service may not be their top priority.