After much consideration, we need to change our policy of filling prescriptions for outside pharmacies.
After a few deeply concerning experiences of wrong medications, incorrect dosing and incorrect carrier substances in pharmaceuticals, we will no longer fill any prescriptions for online pharmacies that require us to sign and return the fax. You will still get medications and opportunities to use an online pharmacy.
"The biggest problem is safety. Pets are not the same as humans physically and their dosing is not the same. This can pose many issues when using an outside pharmacy," said Dr. Jim Carlson. In recent months we've seen patients with incorrect heartworm medications that created a serious health problem among many other troublesome health problems.
Additionally, our team is having a very difficult time devoting hours of manpower to online pharmacy orders. "It isn't as simple as signing the form. Each form must be vetted for accuracy, logged, signed, scanned and faxed. Per item, this can take a half hour." said Dr. Carlson.
More concerning is the constant calling by various companies wanting a receptionist to approve items. It is a high pressure situation and puts too much responsibility on lay staff. "Online pharmacies employ professional sales teams and call centers. They are looking for a "yes" in filling prescriptions so it doesn't matter to them how often they call, if we are serving a local customer, if we have an emergency or euthanasia present. Receiving 50 phone calls a day from online pharmacies prevents us from serving our own clientele effectively," said Cristen Carlson, manager of Riverside Animal Clinic & Holistic Center.
Going forward, our solution is the following:
- We are happy to provide you with a written prescription which you can pick up and mail to any online pharmacy.
- If you will be using an online pharmacy, tell us at your annual appointment so we can complete your request at that time.
- We offer a complete pharmacy on our website www.riversideanimalclinic.net
- We now offer more items in regular stock in our new facility. Please give us a chance to fill prescriptions for you.
- Compounded medication requests will be approved through our office.
- If you live more than 20 miles away, we will mail you a written prescription or in some cases may approve your prescription to an online pharmacy.
- Compounded medications are always approved through an outside source but we prefer our client to submit a written prescription to the compounding pharmacy to prevent errors.
We apologize for any inconvenience in advance. This is nothing personal or greedy. Letting go of online pharmacy faxes are something we've considered doing for many years. With so many new responsibilities in our office, we are unable to continue providing this free service.
