Thursday, January 19, 2006
Compounding
I had to set the word verification for comments because I found a "comment" that links to an internet pharmacy. For those who have thought about ordering controlled substances online, don't. Many of those sites are being investigated by the DEA. They were prosecute you as well as the site owners. Telling the DEA that you did not know that it is illegal to order controlled substances online does not work. Additionally, these pharmacies are not regulated by state boards of pharmacy or anyone else. You may not even received the correct medication after you pay four times as much as you would if you filled it at my pharmacy.
I went to work at L's pharmacy because the dress code was casual, the store closed by 6:00 pm, and it was not open on Sundays. I got so much more out of the job. I was able to work under an amazing compounding technician. SB is from Germany. She was struggling through pharmacy school when she met an American military man and married him. She moved to the US with him and had 2 children. She began working part-time for a pharmacy as a compounding technician. She split with her husband shortly after her youngest born. She began working full time for L's as their compounding technician. Compounding, for those who do not know, is the creation and dispensing of FDA approved drug products in dosage delivery forms not available from manufacturers. It requires the the compounded to be comfortable doing research, to understand chemical principle, and to be able to mix and prepare things. SB drew on her schooling (which according to her was much more thorough than my schooling) and experience to transform L's compounding business into a major source of revenue. I was hired to assist her in the growing business. She convince the pharmacist to hire me because of my background in chemistry. I was drawn to it like I was drawn to chemistry and to cooking. I love the process of combining things to create something new.
SB had a reputation with the other employees as being difficult and moody at times. She did not like men very much due to her ex-husband (Knucklehead). Early on, I earned her respect through my knowledge and my attitude. I had been working there for a short time and she had asked me to do a task for her. When I fumbled with the task, she made a comment about how she had yet to meet a pharmacy student with any common sense. I told her that I had common sense, but I was unable to read minds. She was shocked that I responded, but quickly laughed. We became allies after that day. She made me laugh regularly. She encouraged me to stay with the job even when I felt like the pharmacist hated me. She taught me more about pharmacy and chemistry than either degree program I attended. She also inspired my love of independent pharmacy. I plan to expand into compounding after establishing my core business. Maybe she will want a change a scenery by then, but it is often difficult to transition from teacher to employee.
I went to work at L's pharmacy because the dress code was casual, the store closed by 6:00 pm, and it was not open on Sundays. I got so much more out of the job. I was able to work under an amazing compounding technician. SB is from Germany. She was struggling through pharmacy school when she met an American military man and married him. She moved to the US with him and had 2 children. She began working part-time for a pharmacy as a compounding technician. She split with her husband shortly after her youngest born. She began working full time for L's as their compounding technician. Compounding, for those who do not know, is the creation and dispensing of FDA approved drug products in dosage delivery forms not available from manufacturers. It requires the the compounded to be comfortable doing research, to understand chemical principle, and to be able to mix and prepare things. SB drew on her schooling (which according to her was much more thorough than my schooling) and experience to transform L's compounding business into a major source of revenue. I was hired to assist her in the growing business. She convince the pharmacist to hire me because of my background in chemistry. I was drawn to it like I was drawn to chemistry and to cooking. I love the process of combining things to create something new.
SB had a reputation with the other employees as being difficult and moody at times. She did not like men very much due to her ex-husband (Knucklehead). Early on, I earned her respect through my knowledge and my attitude. I had been working there for a short time and she had asked me to do a task for her. When I fumbled with the task, she made a comment about how she had yet to meet a pharmacy student with any common sense. I told her that I had common sense, but I was unable to read minds. She was shocked that I responded, but quickly laughed. We became allies after that day. She made me laugh regularly. She encouraged me to stay with the job even when I felt like the pharmacist hated me. She taught me more about pharmacy and chemistry than either degree program I attended. She also inspired my love of independent pharmacy. I plan to expand into compounding after establishing my core business. Maybe she will want a change a scenery by then, but it is often difficult to transition from teacher to employee.
# posted by Dawn @ 12:44 PM 
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Do most pharmacies do compounding, or is it a pretty rare thing these days?
Interesting stuff, for sure!
Interesting stuff, for sure!
Most pharmacies do not compound. There are growing number of independent pharmacies that are including compounding into their practices.
Compounding is often needed for antibiotics, or for unusual prescriptions that there is not a generic/brand for. In fact most formulations can theoretically be compounded. However it is of course second line due to the inherent risks of compounding.
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# posted by 
: 1:34 PM
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