getting meds

Welcome to the Coping With Epilepsy Forums

Welcome to the Coping With Epilepsy forums - a peer support community for folks dealing (directly or indirectly) with seizure disorders. You can visit the forum page to see the list of forum nodes (categories/rooms) for topics.

Please have a look around and if you like what you see, please consider registering an account and joining the discussions. When you register an account and log in, you may enjoy additional benefits including no ads, access to members only (ie. private) forum nodes and more. Registering an account is free - you have nothing to lose!

seizuregirl

Stalwart
Messages
388
Reaction score
3
Points
68
I had called in 1 of my meds to the pharmacy a few days ago, they would've had to call my dr to verify with him that they could still do a refill. And I was out shopping earlier, and went to today to pick it up thinking it was ready, but found out that they can't get a hold of my dr so they won't refill it.

The pharmacist I was talking to looked confused when telling me this, and had said that they've never any troubles getting the verification for refills unless it's an out of state dr. for anyone.

I only have a week left and I'm hoping that they can get his O.K. soon!
 
Last edited:
Can your family doctor authorize a refill? If it is a medication you have been on a long time, often this is the case because the family doctor would have a record of it. Failing this, you can go to the ER along with the proof (eg. the previous bottle, info. from the pharmacy that fills your prescriptions, etc.) that you have been on it a long time, that you need a refill and your neurologist cannot be reached.
 
The dr that I see for regular health check-ups won't touch anything that has to do with my seizures since I have an epileptologist for them. He's 1 of the many drs that I've scared with these seizures.

But thank you for telling me about the E.R.! I wouldn't have thought of that, I was thinking about going to the last neurologist I had seen in my town
 
Last edited:
With some pharmacies I find I have to call everyone myself - doctor, pharmacy, and insurance. If there are faxes involved to have to call everyone to confirm they were received and responded to. It makes me mad enough to spit, but it doesn't get done otherwise.
 
I've been with this pharmacy for 10/11yrs and this is the first time I've had any kind of problem with getting a med filled. I just hope it doesn't happen again!
 
I've had to be a go-between when switching pharmacies. It is certainly odd for a pharmacy that had a good record going for you.

Many times I had to call the pharmacy, then the doctor, then the pharmacy... back and fourth until things got right.

Luckily now I work for my pharmacy. I can pull my account up and check on things myself lol.

Maybe they won't screw yours up for another 10 years. :p
 
I sure hope they'll be fine. Only because I don't want to switch to Wal-Mart's pharmacy!

But I do think that they had a problem dealing with, or just getting a hold of my dr to get the ok from him that caused the problem.

My med was ready today, thank goodness, but whats strange is that I normally get a bottle filled for 3 months, I have for 2 yrs now, but this time I only a bottle filled for 1 month. So, if there's more problems next month, it'll be time to switch to a different pharmacy! Or a different dr! (if I can find 1 that will deal with me and in my city preferably))
 
Last edited:
With my previous pharmacy I had my scripts filled every three months. It seemed each month there was another issue. They never really took the time to connect with my doctors office enough to communicate properly. It was terrible.

Now I get an email every month making sure I'm ready to refill. Then I get the meds delivered directly to my desk.

You didn't miss any doses, did you?
 
No, I had enough until Saturday, but by Thursday, i would've done as masterjen had suggested and gone to the E.R. to see if I could have had them refill it for me.

But my Father was ticked off enough that he had said if it wasn't refilled by friday, we were going down to the hospital to talk with my dr about this.
 
When the mail-order pharmacy screwed up my Vimpat order (before I switched meds), I called when I hadn't received it only to find out that they somehow scrapped the order part of the way through. This cost me $100 for a weeks worth from another pharmacy.

I completely understand his feelings. I don't play when it comes to my medicine... and my money lol.

Glad you got yours in time, though. My E is mild as compared to yours. I can deal a day or so without my meds.
 
I would like to think I could've been fine on just my 2nd med alone, or breaking the last of the med in halves to keep some of it in me, until I got the other one filled. But considering that when taking both of my meds together, they don't stop my seizures, I can only imagine what could've happened to me in 2 weeks.
 
The pharmacy will give you several days worth of meds without a prescription (if they have them in stock). You have to make clear the necessity though.

I've found that sometimes pharmacies change managers or staff and go downhil. That goes for doctor's administrative staff too. But I hope that's not your situation!
 
You should always make sure you have at least a 5 day supply of your med just in case your pharmacy messes up. I use a 90 day supply so I always have plenty of meds.
 
Belinda5000, I had just over a week, maybe 8, 9 days left, when I had called my med in. And I do make sure I have about a week, or more on the off chance something like this happens. I normally get a 90 day supply too, but only received a months worth this time.

Matthew74, I had asked them if I could get an emergency supply since I was low when I had gone to pick it up, thinking it was ready, but since I was at the end of my allowed refills, they refused to give me any since they had to verify it all with my dr.
 
seizure girl I'm on auto refill at my pharmacy and I will get my meds refilled weather I need to or not. If your pharmacy has auto refill get on it.
 
I also had a similar problem once, the benefit of a small pharmacy is that if they know you they gave me a few days of meds until the doctor contacted the pharmacy.
 
Which medicine are you on? If it is Lamictal (Lamotrogine), Glaxco Smith-Kline has recalled it.

I have called my neurologist about it. I am waiting for her to call me back.
 
Ruth -- As far as I can tell, there's no current recall of Lamictal. I think you may have googled links to a recall that occurred several years ago.
 
Thanks Ruth, that link is helpful. It sounds like the discontinuation is happening in the UK only, hopefully it won't be a problem in other countries as well.
 
Back
Top Bottom