Pharmacy: A Student Pharmacist's Open Letter To A Confused Radio Station

An open letter to a local radio station host. This letter was sent to a local radio station following a host’s rant regarding “rude” pharmacists. Among his chief complaints were: having to wait “more than 5 seconds” for his Z-Pak medication, being offered a seat by the pharmacist while he waited, and the placement of contraceptives being close to the pharmacy. By posting this letter, I hope to help others further understand the role of pharmacist before they discredit these hardworking individuals.

Dear [Radio Station Name],

I would just like to express my personal frustration with some comments your announcers had tonight around 7:15pm on the radio. He expressed his opinion about the profession of pharmacy, which as a student of pharmacy, I found his comments to be all of disrespectful, insulting, and completely ignorant. The following email is directed at him, but I hope it is considered by the entire [Radio Station Name] staff.

First of all, pharmacists and students alike have been working tirelessly to prove wrong the stereotype you just announced to the entire [Broadcast Area] listening population. Pharmacists actually have doctorates in pharmacy and many have further specializations and education beyond that. Labeling that profession as 'pill counters' is throwing our profession back a half century.

Furthermore, the roles of pharmacists stretch FAR beyond just pulling medications from the shelves and selling them to customers. Has it ever occurred to you that some patients may actually have medications that can be life threatening if incorrectly dosed, including antibiotics which you seem to think are harmless? They save the health system millions of dollars in medication errors and save millions of lives from these errors. So just because your Z-Pak can be pulled off the shelf, you might not get it immediately, perhaps because the pharmacist is spending time counseling other patients on their prescription, calling your insurance company, or maybe even discussing a dosing error with a prescriber. So if you expect your prescription to get to you faster than your cheeseburger from McDonalds, consider that the person behind the counter actually cares about your health more than you think.

It's patients like you with expectations like that that frustrate pharmacists. Most people don't realize that these doctors work extremely long hours, on their feet, with no breaks day in and day out, some pharmacies filling several hundred prescriptions a day. I dare you to approach your medical doctor with concerns about waiting more than 10 minutes in their office before being seen.

To also address your concern about being asked to sit, we are asked to do that because there is sensitive patient information around the pharmacy, in which pharmacists like to speak to patients in private about their condition or medication. It would violate HIPAA to do so in a space where we didn't at least attempt to provide them privacy. And as far as the intimate items near the pharmacy, there is a purpose behind their location as well. Patients commonly have questions about these products, and pharmacists also promote prevention and protection from STDs, HIV, and unwanted pregnancy. I'm not sure where else you'd recommend these products be placed, but this is a pharmacy and these products are sold here.

I think it is unbelievable that you would disrespect an entire profession and generalize them in such a way. I can only imagine if similar opinions were expressed about a different profession like nursing. It needs to be understood that pharmacists are part of the entire health care team, and play a role throughout this system, from the hospital to the community. I think an apology is necessary to this profession and you need to clarify for yourself and your listeners the amount of work that goes into preparing prescriptions.

Also, you should realize that you are picking up a prescription in an area that has some of the most progressive views of pharmacy in the country. Maybe with this knowledge, you'll see what an asset your pharmacist can be to you and your family. I was listening to this station with other pharmacy students, and all being big fans of country radio, we were very disappointed that this was aired in the community in which we work.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions regarding the profession and I'd be happy to direct you to someone who can further enlighten you if need be.

Sincerely,

Katie Buhlinger

Note: Some specific information regarding the radio station has been censored.

November 19th - Update from the author: Thank you to everyone for your kind support. It is evident that there are many individuals equally as passionate about advancing our profession and stopping this negativity as I am. The Raleigh/Durham-based radio station did not respond to the letter, but made an announcement on air regarding the Buzz Feed tonight. After reading the introduction of the Buzz Feed, they went on to completely disregard the contents of the letter and the purpose of spreading the truth about what pharmacy is. Instead they made fun of the desire to receive an apology. We are still waiting for a formal response.

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