There is No GOVERNMENT Subsidy

This paragraph isn't really about stupidity, just an observation that many Singaporeans do not know what it entails to be a subsidised patient. Just because you are registered as a subsidised patient does not mean you get all drugs at subsidised rates, as there is a list given by the government as to which medicine is subsidised. Any medicine that falls outside this list means you have to pay the full rate regardless of who you are. Note: it is the government that decides on the list, not the hospitals or polyclinics.

The stupid part comes when a person repeatedly ask why there is no subsidy given even though she has been told her medicine does not come under the list of subsidised medicine. As if it is not enough for her to ask, but she has to get her friends to ask as well. My technician probably repeated herself 3-4 times, explaining why no subsidy was given. Really got on my nerves, that I had to tell the patient bluntly that we are not the ones to decide on the subsidy. No subsidy means no subsidy. The government decides so go ask the government.

It is Still the Same Expiry Date and Price!

Parent came to collect medicine for his child using an old prescription. I asked him if he wanted to collect the balance of the medicine he said, "Yes, I want a bottle." When I showed him the full bottle he told me the last time we gave him a smaller bottle and he did not want the full bottle as the medicine expires 1 mth after opening. Anyway, from what is left on the prescription he was only entitled to another half bottle. Explained to him that I will have to give him all the 250ml balance from the last time.

He then asked if that is a small bottle. I mimed the size and he said that was not the size he collected the last time; it was smaller. However, from the pharmacy label on the prescription it showed that he collected 250ml of the medicine the previous time. When I told him he actually collected 250ml the last time, he was not convinced. He started asking how much I would charge him for 250ml. When I told him the price, he insisted I was charging him more and wanted me to check how much he was charged the last time. *Roll my eyes* Logic on my side, the system showed he paid the same amount the last time, but he of course argued that he collected other medications that visit as well, which was again proven not to be so. *Bwahaha*

Unable to argue anymore, he then told me to give him a longer expiry date for the medicine as the last bottle we gave him expired within a month from the collection date. Hello... Anybody up there? He just said he did not want the full bottle as the medicine expires 1 mth after opening, so does it make a difference whether I am or he is the one to open the bottle? The medicine still expires in a mth's time even if it was opened in the pharmacy. The pack size for the bottle is 500ml and if I were to dispense 250ml it is logic that I have to open the original bottle and pour out half its content onto another.

After I poured the medicine, I realise the prescription was missing. Asked my in-charge if he saw the prescription, he told me the parent took back the prescription from the counter. I looked at the parent and he took the prescription out from his wallet. I think this man's stupidity is bottomless. You don't go around taking prescriptions while it is being processed and you don't take back the prescription unless it is returned to you!

One Bottle at a Time

Was counselling a parent on paracetamol (aka Panadol) for his child today. Almost wanted to vomit blood. The child was given 2 bottles of paracetamol and just to inform the parent I told him the 2 bottles contain the same medicine. He then asked me was whether he is to feed the child from both bottles. DUH! SAME MEDICINE! Who in the world with common sense would feed the child from both bottles when you've been told they are the same medicine?! You obviously feed from one bottle first, finish the first bottle then open the next one.

Move Faster!

I seriously think the girl who was in front of me when entering the MRT this morning has got absolutely no brains at all. The moment she stepped into the train she paused and took her own sweet time to slowly stroll further in. Not only that, she took a long time to decide whether she wanted to move left or right thus blocking the path of everybody who was trying to get into the train. It is peak hour and she does not even have the common sense to move in quickly. The train was relatively empty for peak hours therefore she has no reason to move in slowly.

When Asking for Sponsorship...

Today's story is contributed by a friend working in the food industry.

There was this guy helping a community association source for sponsorship. (Not sure the sponsorship is for what event.) As he had previously received sponsorship from my friend's company, he contacted the same person he liased with for the previous sponsorship. My friend's colleague was previously working in another branch of the company's business, which is no longer in existence. Hence, he passed the case to my colleague as per protocol.

My friend contacted the guy requesting for sponsorship to find out more details from him, and at the same time to inform him to put in an official request, in writing, to the company. Instead of agreeing to do it, he told my friend he is just the middleman and asked my friend to contact the association for the official request. Anybody with commonsense knows that in the first place when asking for sponsorship you need to supply an official request. Sure, you may call up to just sound out if the company is interested in sponsoring the event, at the end of the day any verbal agreement is not official without documentation to support. Any party can simply turn back on the verbal agreement.

Next, the onus to supply the request in black and white should be on the person/ organisation requesting for the sponsorship. The company giving the sponsorship has no obligations/ responsibilities to go bugging for an official request. No official request, no sponsorship. Simple eh.

The story ended with the guy saying he would get the association to write in for the sponsorship, but that was after my friend gave an incredulous "sure" when she was told to contact the association for the letter.

Cannot Make Up the Mind

My in-charge's having a fair share of his stupid patients. A patient came to collect effervescent calcium plus vitamin C tablets. As this is the first time she was taking this supplement she made a lot of enquiries such as whether other patients are also taking the supplement. Hello... does it matter if other patients are taking it as well? What matters is the doctor, in his professional judgement, decided that this particular supplement would meet her health needs. When she found out not many patients collect the supplement at our pharmacy, she started wondering if she should collect the whole lot prescribed by the doctor. This was after we went through the trouble to procure the supplement from another pharmacy in the hospital.

Anyway, she basically started telling my in-charge she could not make up her mind as to how many bottles to take and started asking him what she should do. In the end, my in-charge had to tell her to go sit somewhere to think things through before getting back to him as he had other patients to serve. After a long while she came back saying she would just take 1 bottle. Could tell my in-charge was really annoyed by then as we are now stuck with the supplements that she does not want.

You Need to Go Back to School!

There is a doctor who does not know what is Bactrim and just prescribe it for a patient. Bactrim is a combination antibiotic containing trimethoprim and sulfamethoxazole (both are antibiotics). Thing is the commercial adult tablet contains 80mg of trimethoprim and 400mg of sulfamethoxazole. There are 2 ways to prescribe this drug:
1. Bactrim 480mg BD x 1/52 (meaning 480mg 2 times a for 1 week) OR
2. Bactrim 80mg (TMP) BD x 1/52 (TMP is the short form for trimethoprim)

Either way at pharmacy side we would know immediately that the doctor wants to give 1 adult tablet twice a day. However, the stupid doctor prescribed it as Bactrim 120mg BD, and when I called up to clarify if he is referring to the TMP component, he asked me what is trimethoprim! Naturally I was shocked as it meant the doctor does not know anything about the drug that he prescribed for the patient.

I went into a detailed explanation of what components can be found in Bactrim and after the explanation he still does not get the fact that Bactrim contains 2 antibiotics. Really feel like strangling the doctor. Best is to bludgeon him and make him forget he is a doctor so he will not do more harm to patients.

Pls Answer to the Question

I asked a patient if he has allergies to medicine today, and he said he is allergic to strong medicine. When I asked him what strong medicine, he got irritated and said he's old so he is allergic to strong medicine. What kind of stupid answer is that. There is no such thing as strong medicine causing allergies, and besides when talking about medicine potency you can only compare within the same class of medication. To do otherwise is something like comparing apples with bananas and then saying a particular brand of apple is better than another brand of bananas.

When I tried to correct his concept of strong medicine causing allergies, he became irritated and said his son is a doctor and he knows that he is allergic to strong medicines. What has the son being a doctor got to do with this?! If the son thinks strong medicines can cause allergies then I think Singaporeans should start worrying about the kind of medical care they are receiving.

Wonderful Imagination

A parent came to enquire regarding a medication used to control Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Apparently he has not been giving his child the medication as he is worried that the child is going to rely on the medication for long term to perform well in school. He started going on and on about how it is not worth it for the child to take the medication just to perform well in school. I really wanted to tell him that the medication only helps the child to focus better during lessons, but whether the child eventually performs well in school depends a lot on his intelligence and hardwork. In addition, he will be a burden in class as we're not talking about simply not being able to focus, but the fact that he may be disturbing the class with antics and affecting the study environment.

Then the father started asking about the side effects of the medication, which frankly speaking I was reluctant to let him know as he definitely belongs to the type who believes that a good drug has no side effects. When I told him it may cause dizziness, he started asking if the child will fall down and what do I mean by severe dizziness. I mean, come on if your child is dizzy to the extend that he actually falls down and that is not considered as severe dizziness I really don't know what is considered severe dizziness. Maybe when the child is in a perpetual "drunkened" state?

Introductions

I realise that I have been writing too much about stupid people I have encountered in my first blog. Therefore I have decided to create another blog simply for me to vent my frustrations about the stupid people; that way I won't have super long posts in my first blog. If you have any encounters with stupid people or stupid things you're most welcomed to vent your frustration on this blog. :D