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I have the worst luck with HP! The other nurses on our staff get through to great people, but I always managed to get someone who either a) requires me to repeat the same information at least three times, b) talks to me like I'm 5, or c) interrupts me constantly to ask questions completely irrelevant to the issue at hand. I'm cursed!!!
I had one, when I asked for advise for a cream to rub on aching joints ( I was thinking along the lines of ketoprofen or something Voltaren) and he insisted on ibuprofen or naproxen when the terminal diagnosis for my patient is renal failure, even after I argued that my protocol says no NSAIDs for renal failure patients.
I usually have great success with HP. Every once in a while I will have someone who just doesn't get what I am asking, and will be talking about oranges while I am talking about apples (or even cherries!) but that has been rare. When I think I am getting no where, I will (opps!) disconnect the call. Then I call back in a minute or 2 and start over.
The HP pharmacists have been god sends when I am stumped with symptom control questions. The last time a few weeks ago was a man with awful terminal agitation (or as I have seen it called here, agitated terminal agitation) who every time I thought we were giving him enough Morphine and Haldo and Ativan to get him under control he would burn it all off and ramp up again. The pharmacist upped the dose of Haldol much more than I felt comfortable asking a doc for, but once she said that 4mg q hour until he was sedated then 4 mg q4 hours...I had the confidence to say that to the doc and he was all for it. I do find that if I say to a reluctant doc that I spoke to the Hospice Pharmacia pharmacist, they are usually very willing to order drugs and amounts that they otherwise might not even consider.
Has anyone used Procare pharmacy and what did you think? I have had times where I'll wait close to an hour for someone to call back; always get a machine and have to leave my number. If I'm at a patients house, that's a long wait. Also, not that impressed with their recommendations. Anyone have feedback?
Vtachy1
448 Posts
When you call to get advise with meds, do you have good luck with Hospice Pharmacia?