As a pharmacist you deal with many people—from the patients in front of you to doctors, insurance companies and sales reps.
Physicians, are perhaps the busiest of the bunch and it may be difficult to pin them down to get information Here are some tips to maintain good relationships with doctors:
1. Be as fast as possible. If you’re on the phone for too long, they’ll not remember anything. And, whatever you want the doctor to remember the most—such as a drug interaction—tell him last so he remembers it.
2. Keep your relationship professional. There’s no need to get personal with the doctors, and only add any friendly chat at the end of your conversation if necessary. “Side-talk can deter from the patient and everything is about the patient,” says Ernie Gates, president of Gates Healthcare Associates,, a pharmaceutical and healthcare consulting firm.
3. Don’t ask too many questions. A lot of younger pharmacists ask a lot of questions about prescriptions, says Stanley George, a licensed pharmacist in New York City, because they want to be sure they are safe but this eats up more of the doctor’s time. "Trust what the doctor has prescribed," he says, "but should you have an important question in regard to patient's safety, and overall good health, you must ask it.”
4. Get to know the doctor. Pay attention to each doctor’s prescriptions and learn his or her patterns. You can jot down notes on each doctor, says George, but there’s not usually the time to do that in a pharmacy setting, so try to do it in your head. (Fortunately, he adds, most pharmacists have great memories,.)
5. Be easy to deal with. Also be prepared to build up your relationship gradually since the doctors are so busy. Doctors will remember you if you’re easy to deal with, explains George, “and if you can every now and then slip in a bit of humor it helps.”
6 Nurses and receptionists: Treat the doctors’ nurses or receptionists with respect and get to know them because they’re the gatekeeper and can help you get to the doctor.
7. Never cry wolf. Let the doctor, nurse or receptionist know if something isn’t urgent so they know that when it is urgent, you really need it.
8. Don’t waste a second of physicians’ time. They’ll be more likely to take your call if they know you’re fast.
9. Never try to have more knowledge than the physician. Because they’ll figure you out and it will be very difficult to have a professional relationship because they’ll lose their respect for you. There’s nothing wrong with saying that you don’t know the answer to a question and you’ll get back to them, says Eddie Bubar, owner and proprietor of Eddie's Pharmacy, in West Hollywood, California.