Drug Topics - November 5, 2007 - (Page 24)

24 DRUG TOPICS NOVEMBER 5, 2007 www.drugtopics.com Cover Story idea is that it can be tapped surreptitiously without antagonizing the robber. One R.Ph. told Drug Topics that providing wireless panic buttons to personnel should be mandatory for all retail pharmacies. “But they won’t,” she said, “because it costs money and they don’t see the need.” Two years ago, Rep. Jeremy Fischer (D, Maine) introduced a state bill that would require security systems with panic buttons in businesses open at times other than regular business hours, but the business community did DT CAPSULE not like the text, he said. Not all Pharmacies with a safety tions cost robbery precaumoney. “Don’t completely cover all your protocol can help staff windows so people can’t defuse potentially violent see in,” for example, Conklin said. Not only might situations. people going by look in and spot a violent situation, he explained, but robbers feel less secure when it’s not “closed in.” tain controlled substances via robbery. “The federal statute was enacted in 1984, and it’s a serious felony.” He added that shortly after this became law, NCPA provided every pharmacy in the United States with a Warning, Robbery of this Pharmacy is a Federal Crime sign for posting. “We have thought recently that it might be a good idea to make those signs available again.” While such signs may not stop the pros, they could well cause a local user to hesitate and find some other way to access his drugs. Another sign to consider posting: Limited cash is available to our store personnel. Conklin also recommends keeping a limited supply of the drugs most requested by robbers. Keep the main supply locked up, then tell the robber you don’t have access to the safe and you have only this quantity to work with. A sign to this effect would back up the spoken word and might also be a deterrent. Jim Schiffer, R.Ph., a Brooklyn, N.Y., pharmacy owner who was robbed 18 times during the 1970s and ’80s, goes a step further. “I don’t carry OxyContin [oxycodone, Purdue Pharma]—a primary target of robbers—unless I get a script for which I can dispense the entire amount I ordered.” But he does not give that credit for his absence of holdups over the past 23 years. “The neighborhood has undergone drastic gentrification.” With neighborhood improvements, he said, the drug dealers have left the area. Schiffer also said not to advertise what you carry. “We used to tell people we were suspicious of that we don’t carry [alprazolam]. A guy said, ‘There it is on your shelf.’ So we had to relocate [susceptible] products so they are not visible.” He added that pharmacies need a lot of lighting, adequate staffing, and continual foot traffic. Strategically placed mirrors can also help personnel in other parts of the store see what’s going on in the pharmacy and at cash registers. Warning network In Las Vegas, where armed robbery has become pervasive, pharmacists have set up an informal warning network for when a robbery occurs, according to Khanh Pham, R.Ph., president, Nevada Pharmacist Association. “We alert one another, one pharmacy to the next.” The association has also distributed an information tip sheet to pharmacies on what to do before and after a robbery. Pham believes pharmacy personnel’s visibility makes them vulnerable to robbers, and that it would be better if their area could be less open. “If the robbers could not predict where you are, how could they make their move?” As it is, she said, they can easily observe where pharmacists and techs move and know the pattern. “They come in and know exactly where to go.” Conklin suggests pharmacies become law enforcementfriendly. “Get to know your local officers,” he said. “Keep a coffeepot on; that’s a good excuse for officers to stop by.” A police car making regular stops and an officer keeping an eye out can’t hurt, he said. It can also be helpful to alert local officers to suspicious customers. For example, Pham referred to one local robbery by a person who had brought in Rxs prior to the robbery. The pharmacist recognized the man, but he had used phony names and fake identification for each visit prior to the robbery. John Rector, Esq., NCPA general counsel, noted that it’s a federal crime to ob- Patient rage safeguards Dealing with angry, even abusive, customers is certainly not unique to the pharmacy, and any resulting violence is covered by regular assault laws, according to Rector. “What is unique is having to deal with people who are really sick or stressed or who have disease states that make them more aggressive [customers] than other businesses have to deal with,” he said. Also unique to the pharmacy and other healthcare settings is the routine capture of patient histories. And a history of violence is the best indicator of future violence, according to Sheila Dunn, president and CEO, Quality America, OSHA compliance consultants and trainers for healthcare providers. “Put a system in place to warn staff about a potentially aggressive, Photo: Jim Shive http://www.drugtopics.com

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Drug Topics - November 5, 2007 Contents Latebreakers Latebreakers in Depth Letters Rx Care Community Practice 150 Years of American Pharmacy Hospital Practice Pharmacists at Risk Government and Law High-Density Lipoprotein New Products Advertisers Index Classified Viewpoint

Drug Topics - November 5, 2007

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