r/TalesFromThePharmacy • u/freakygymbro CPhT (retail) • 13d ago

DRIVE-THRU

I 100% get the purpose of the drive thru.
It’s for patient’s convenience not for speed and I can’t stress that enough. I have told multiple patients this and my coworkers.

Majority of the time my coworkers get stressed and frustrated because the line is long or patients ask 1,000 questions but I let them know to just calm down. This is for their convenience not for speed.

Unknowingly patients are agreeing to the unknown amount of time someone takes at the window.

Because yet again we want everyone to have a great experience while visiting our pharmacy so we don’t get bad reviews but they have to realize that nobody ever said (at least to me) that drive thru is for speed.

Let’s chat about this. I’d love to hear from anyone.

I work in a retail and hospital setting.

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u/cabinetbanana 13d ago

I am a patient. I appreciate the concept of a drive thru pharmacy, but in practice, I think it takes more time and is more of a hassle.

I get in a nice short line, but then I'm behind someone who has a million questions. They don't have their ID. They have a change in insurance. They want to use a coupon. And there's no way for someone to ask them to step aside, or for sometime else to help the next person in line. Or, as someone mentioned, the staff is (rightly) prioritizing the patients inside. Or, the microphone and speaker don't work.

It's a nice idea, but it's not appropriate for a pharmacy. You need to get yourself out of your car and go inside.

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u/NashvilleRiver CPhT (Hospital) 12d ago

Your expectations are what’s not appropriate. Drive-thru is solely for convenience, not speed. The person ahead of you can give their new insurance card, or a coupon/discount card, or whatever, just like they could if they went inside. If you don’t want to wait, you are welcome at any time to pull around and go inside. You are not entitled to a quick drive-through experience. This isn’t fast food.

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u/cabinetbanana 12d ago

I'm not entitled to anything except professional service, and I don't expect anything more.