Rant: Bartell Drugs' crappy prescription-refill system

[Jeannie]

I submitted a complaint in writing and also via the Bartell’s website, so I think it’s OK to rant here. We HATE Bartell’s new phone-in refill system. Time and again over the past 10 days or so, when we call in to the automated system for a refill, we are told that the prescription will be ready at a certain time and a certain day. And it isn’t ready at all!
For instance, the automatic system informed me that my prescription would be ready by 10 AM today (Dec. 2). When I stopped by around 5 PM, it wasn’t ready. A pharmacy employee then said it’d be ready in a half-hour. So I went for a walk, ran a few errands, and returned at 8:30 PM. Still wasn’t ready!
I’m not blaming the nice lady at the counter. But the system is screwed up.
Hope I don’t have to transfer the prescriptions to another pharmacy and say bye-bye Bartell.

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[aa]

I stopped going to Bartell pharmacy a few years go after several prescriptions they forgot to fill causing me to have to wait another day and one time they gave me 2x as many pills than I was supposed to get! Now I use Pharmaca, they are nice, helpful, great at providing instructions and Meds are the same price so don’t let the boutique-y atmosphere stop you. No more frustrations!

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[celeste17]

We use the QFC Pharmacy and have had a really good experience with them. Michael who use to own Westside Pharmacy is there and the rest of the staff is great. I call in a prescription and I am told a date and time to pick it up and it’s usually ready the same day I called it in.

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[Jeannie]

Thanks for the recommendations. I love Pharmaca, but it’s really hard to find a place to park.
Forgot to mention another Bartell’s snafu. They gave me the wrong pills about a month ago! I have no idea what they gave me, and I know for certain it wasn’t just another form of the usual pills. So I took them back. The person behind the counter said that a “floater” pharmacist probably filled the order, but, still, that’s a big boo-boo!
The Jefferson Square store is very busy, and there’s almost always a line. I like to support Seattle-based businesses like Bartell’s, but I’m getting a little fed up. Maybe I’ll follow the QFC suggestion. Or try CVS when it opens.

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[JoB]

i am not a fan of large pharmacy chains but i did stop in the CVS in Burien the other day and discovered they have an actual first aid section full of the kinds of things you can’t find in other drugstores any more… i purchased a few items to put together a good international travel first aid kit

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[Diane]

I’ve used Bartell at Admiral for years; always works perfectly for me

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[Gina]

Online and telephone refill never worked for me at Bartell. I gave them another try when Safeway was being rebuilt. Morton’s and Sheppard’s always worked well in the pre computer days. Bartell pharmacy I will give a decade to work out computer kinks before trying again.

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[sunshine]

Rite Aid on California Ave has been our go-to for years. They have an easy online re-fill system and have provided great assistance working with Doctor and insurance. My Christmas shopping motto is “They have a lot of nice things at Rite-Aid”.

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[Curate]

Have used Bartell’s Admiral for over a decade, monthly, and it has been perfect.

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[jissy]

Jeannie: I too would encourage you to use Pharmaca if you’re looking to switch — I have never had a problem finding parking in the lot behind their building.

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[blbl]

I’ve given the Admiral Bartell so many chances, but completely gave up on them about a year ago for the same reasons you list. I’ve been very happy at “anywhere but Bartell”. I still like the store, but the pharmacy is terrible.

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[Jeannie]

Update: After submitting my complaint, I got a call from a Bartell’s rep. Man, was she apologetic! (as she should be) Good grief, they refer to their customers as “guests.” Anywaaaay, she acknowledged that the Jefferson Square Bartell’s was having a lot of problems with its shiny new refill system. The new version was supposed to simplify ordering and require less input from the pharmacists themselves. Epic fail. Part of the problem, she said, is that, with the Junction area growing so fast, it’s been hard for the system to keep up with demand from all those “guests.” She said she’s received multiple complaints and will be in touch with her IT department to resolve this.
If you’ve had problems with the Jefferson Square branch, consider submitting your concerns via http://www.inmoment.com/websurvey/2/execute#/1

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[T Rex]

I have been going to Pharmaca for at least 10 years, but they just had a major turnover. Danny and Meranda are now both gone and of course no one will tell me where they went. I am assuming they are working together. If anyone knows or if Danny or Meranda read this post, please let us know where you are.

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[mskravitz.3]

WOW if you think Bartell’s in J Square is bad you should try the Safeway on Roxbury!!! Their phone system is good and they get you your RX when it saysit will be ready but the Pharmacist she has got to be the rudest person I have ever met and this isn’t just one occasion! You ask for a one on one and she rolls her eyes and then just says “wah,wah, wah” and walks away.

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[Sue]

T Rex, I’m sorry to hear that about Danny at Pharmaca – he was the best thing about their pharmacy. I was out of town for 2 weeks, and when I went to refill a prescription last week he wasn’t there, but I just assumed it was his day off.

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[Jeannie]

T. Rex, maybe you should contact Pharmaca’s corporate offices – they may not be able/willing to help, but it’s worth a try.
info@pharmaca.com
303.442.2304
MsKravitz.3, contact the manager or Safeway’s regional HQ. That attitude from the pharmacist is unacceptable.

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[aa]

What I heard from one of the non pharmacy employees at Pharmaca about Danny was that it was not his choice to leave. She said he had some offers but wasn’t settled anywhere yet. I have received great customer service from all the pharmacy staff at Pharmaca. Can’t say much about the rest of the staff because I don’t do other shopping in the store but I believe the whole crew is great.

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[whalewatcher]

Jeez, and I was going to ask if any other place was better than Rite Aid, which is an unqualified disaster, IMHO. Almost every attempt to refill involves multiple trips because medications are missing. Problems include: out of stock, wrong dosage, not eligible (insurance says it is). They never tell you when there is a problem. Now I don’t leave the counter without going through every single Rx with them.

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[clark5080]

never had an issue with the online refill on Bartells web page

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[22blades]

I truly wanted to support a local company besides the convenience. I gave up on them over a year ago after getting refill notices only to go there & they were short or out of stock. The Physician – Pharmacy interface was always screwed up with multiple calls to straighten things out (the SAME prescription of over a decade). With my travels for my employment, they became too unreliable.

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[T Rex]

I am still attempting to find another pharmacy. The entire staff of Pharmeca is now gone and their service has been horrible! Makes me wonder why they all left in a very short period of time. If anyone knows where they went, please post on the blog.

Meranda grew up in West Seattle, I am assuming she is somewhere in the neighborhood. Before they were all gone it was very obvious they could not say ANYTHING about the whereabouts of their former employees. I get that to a point, but like I told one of them, I’m leaving regardless.

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[aa]

I am sad that things have changed so much at Pharmacia (or however you spell it). At first I thought it was just Dan and now I see that the whole crew has changed and it is a rough transition! I want to practice patience but I am growing weary of the misinformation (they say things are ready so I come in and they’re not) and the very slow service. Something really bad has to happen for that many people to jump ship. Time to reread everyone’s comments to see who to try next.

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[Dandelion4]

This happened to me a few weeks ago at the Jefferson square Bartells with a prescription. The pharmacist behind the counter said the telephone system was broken and not to trust the date or time of completion given. She said there was nothing they could do as the telephone system was a national thing, so individual stores couldn’t fix it.

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[Sue]

aa, I just switched from Pharmaca to the QFC Pharmacy at 42nd/Alaska and so far I really like the service there. I also wanted to be patient with Pharmaca during the transition, but my patience ran out, and I missed Danny terribly. Especially after two of my doctors said they were having trouble with them not returning calls about prescriptions they were calling in. I also got tired of showing up for prescriptions and having them say “we’re just finishing that up” when it was clear they hadn’t even started it yet.

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[T Rex]

Thanks everyone for the information. Sorry to hear we are all having to change but business is business. Still looking for Danny and Meranda, if anyone knows where they are please share.
Maybe I should start calling all the pharmacies in West Seattle to see if they are there, I guess it cannot hurt.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 2 months ago by T Rex.

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