Nothing is worse than being sick or injured until you get to the pharmacy and are forced to deal with rude pharmacists who only seem to care about getting you out of their sight.
You may be wondering why it seems that so many pharmacists are rude to customers; if you continue reading you will find nine answers that shed light on the topic below.
Why Are Pharmacists So Rude?
1. Despise The Drive-Thru Window
When you are working in a busy pharmacy there are a lot of important things to handle and oftentimes there is little time to accomplish those tasks.
Add the distraction of one or more drive-thru windows into the mix and it can get even more busy and confusing.
Most pharmacists despise the drive-thru window because it takes a lot of extra time and requires them to step away from the people who are waiting in person.
Working a drive-thru window is hard because it can be difficult to communicate clearly and properly through a scratchy microphone and a window.
2. Forced To Be Robots
Many pharmacists seem to be so rude because pharmacies are more concerned with how many prescriptions get filled than providing good customer support.
Pharmacists are essentially forced to be robots in a matter of speaking because they have to focus so much on counting pills and getting prescriptions filled quickly.
They are not able to stop and take the time to talk to the customer and discuss things as they should because they are being timed on how long it takes to fill orders.
Many pharmacies reprimand pharmacists who do not fill prescriptions fast enough because big pharma has put so much pressure on them to push out products.
This is another reason so many mistakes are made and why it is so important for the patient/customer to double-check that they are getting the correct medications.
3. Insurance Companies Are A Hassle
A lot of pharmacists come off as rude because they deal with all types of insurance companies on a daily basis which is a royal pain in the derriere as it takes up time they don’t have.
Dealing with insurance companies means being put on hold and transferred multiple times which can put anyone in a bad mood.
If you know your pharmacist is super busy and has to call insurance companies give them a little break because they are trying their best to do multiple tasks without making mistakes.
4. Not Appropriately Compensated
Pharmacists are not just pill dispensers, they also have a plethora of other tasks to handle throughout the day as well.
Many pharmacists are rude because they feel that they are not being appropriately compensated for the amount of work and time they are putting into the job.
Pharmacists had to spend a lot of time and money getting their education and should be valued similarly to a physician when it comes to the pay scale.
5. Pharmacy Hoppers Create Confusion
If you are the type of person who hops from one pharmacy to another for better pricing or different medications this is a good reason your pharmacist may be rude to you.
When someone uses multiple pharmacies it can cause a lot of confusion when it comes to dealing with new prescriptions, refills, and insurance companies.
6. Real World Not As Portrayed In School
Pharmacists have a wealth of knowledge that they are just waiting to share with you but they don’t always have the time and this can be frustrating to them, hence the bad attitude.
Pharmacy school portrays a more idyllic world where pharmacists are smiling and happy as they gladly take the time to answer questions and help each person individually.
In reality, it is nothing like that; pharmacists are scrambling to meet quotas and get to the next person in line with little concern about their individual situation.
7. Rude Customers
Let’s be fair, it’s not always the pharmacist that is rude. Customers can be rude and impatient while waiting for their medications, some will even cause a scene.
Anyone who deals with the public on a daily basis can say that after dealing with rude people for a long time the negative attitude tends to rub off, that goes for a pharmacist too.
If people would show more patience there would be less rudeness and more smoothness.
8. Spread Too Thin
Pharmacists tend to be rude nowadays because there is such a high demand for prescriptions and not enough staff to keep things running smoothly.
Many pharmacies are understaffed which means the pharmacists are overworked, overtired, and generally underpaid which makes them grumpy.
When a person is spread too thin their patience will run out much faster than someone who has plenty of help and can take the necessary time to do a job correctly and efficiently.
9. Uppity Doctors With Bad Penmanship
Some pharmacists are rude because they have to deal with condescending doctors who treat them like they don’t have the competency to fill the prescription.
Pharmacists also get rude when they have to try to read a doctor’s chicken scratch on a prescription and have no idea what the order is for.
Many mistakes are made because pharmacists cannot read the doctor’s handwriting and they get blamed which can put them in a bad mood as well.
Truthfully, most physicians don’t know as much about medicines as a pharmacist or how they work together and affect the body which is why pharmacists are so valuable to health care.
To learn more, you can also read our posts on why bouncers are so rude, why bartenders are so rude, and why real estate agents are so rude.
Conclusion
As you can see there are a lot of reasons why pharmacists are so rude these days. They are generally overworked, underpaid, and pushed to produce volume rather than quality service.
Next time you think your pharmacist is being rude, try to put yourself in his/her shoes before getting too upset because they likely doing their best to get everything done correctly.
