six weeks

"I'd like to call in a prescription, it's for Vitamin D 50,000 units. Number 8. Take one once weekly for 6 weeks"
"You want to give them 8?"
"Yes"
"But they are only taking it for 6 weeks?"
"Yes"
"And you want to give them 8?"
"Yes"
"Ok..."

armor all

So this lady called in and said, 'I need a refill on my estradiol, progesterone, and my Armor All.' Are you polishing your car today too? (She meant to say armour thyroid...)

umm... you called us...

An insurance company called us, and this conversation ensued...

Insurance Company: Hey, one of our members called and said you told them we didn't cover compounded medications, but we do, so can you reprocess it while I'm on the line?

Ashleigh: Sure
Processes prescription which is rejected

Ash: Your company is rejecting the claim

Insurance Company: Hmm, well we will cover some of the ingredients. Why don't you bill for the ingredients we cover and then charge the patient separately for the ingredients that we don't cover

Ash: because that's insurance fraud

Insurance Company: Hmm... well, you're just going to have to call the help desk then

Ash: You called us...

Insurance Company: Hangs up.

Annalyce

Patient: Do you guys carry Annalyce?
Amber: Annalyce, I've never heard of that product. Do you know what it is used for?
Patient: It's a product my and my wife's therapist told us we should get
Amber: Hmm... can you spell it for me?
Patient: A-N-A-L space E-E-Z-E
Amber: Ohh...

Later

Amber: What kind of therapist are they going to?

continuation of yesterday's post

We got a call from the doctors office on the miralax I sent them.
Nurse: we received a fax from you regarding (patient's) miralax prescription. Isn't miralax glycopyrrolate?
Tech: no, miralax is polyethylene glycol.
Nurse: well, which one are you faxing me about?
Tech: the fax is regarding the dose of miralax
Nurse: well, we can put 3 refills on it.
Tech: we already have refills on it. We were faxing regarding the dose.
Nurse: well that's the dose for the glycopyrrolate.
Tech: I understand that. The prescription was faxed to us for miralax.
Nurse: well, we can put 3 refilled on the glycopyrrolate.
Tech: we already have refills on the glycopyrrolate
Nurse: then why did you fax us?
Tech: you faxed us first.
Nurse: ok, disregard the fax.

dimensional analysis

I got a prescription faxed to me for miralax 0.2mg/ml give 5ml 4 times daily. The usual way miralax is done is to dissolve a capful in 8 oz of water. After a little dimensional analysis, I found the script was for one capful dissolved in 2833 oz of water, or 85 liters. I wrote my math on the script and sent it back with a note of "is this really what you want?"

Are You Really That Worried?

When I was an intern, a nurse came into the pharmacy satellite and asked which pill in a cup of maybe 12 happened to be the patient's lithium. I dumped them out on the counter, pointed to the lithium and said "it's that one." "Thanks," she said, "now I have to go throw these all away and get new pills." Little did that nurse know, more than one of those tablets may or may not have been on the floor of the pharmacy before being dispensed to her for administration...