Today I cried out of frustration and anger, this doesn’t happen often but at times it is a reality.
Who would have thought my arch-nemesis would be the pharmacy.
The ordering and collection of needed meds drives me insane.
To the point I try to alleviate this stress by having a little reserve stock in or asking medical professionals to prescribe it in bulk to prolong this activity.
The reason being, it’s never simple and at times it hinders my mental health to the point I’m not the person I would like to be.
It should be simple, but more often than not, this exercise can take a couple of attempts to get right.
To the point the medication has run out or you’re on the last dregs.
Like most things, the world has become more complicated since Brexit, Covid, the war and climate change.
Medication shortages are not a new thing, but have been emphasized by a lot of pharmaceutical ingredients not being made in the UK.
And further, medication is complicated with being made up of 2 main components, inactive and active ingredients.
Inactive ingredients have no direct role in making your body well, as active pharmaceutical ingredients is the medicine.
So, the inactive ingredients could be a plant, animal-based or any other product that is safe for human consumption, like milk powder, corn starch, iron, or wax.
These are manly used for coating, colouring, and binding.
Which is where the war and climate change comes in.
With knowing this information I’m very mindful of the complications with getting Billy’s meds, but have learnt that sometimes its about working through a problem and not giving up at the first hurdle.
So, thinking out side of the box is necessary at times.
So today was the fourth attempt in getting his much-needed liver
tablets.
This medication was ordered a number of weeks ago and there is still no sign.
Medication attempts
Ordered prescription from the pharmacy over the telephone.
First attempt (day 7) no prescription signed by doctor. Advised by pharmacy to go to the doctors to chase this up, secretary said this would be done today.
Second attempt (day 14) prescription was in but medication could not be sourced
Third attempt (day 20) medication still could not be sourced. Decided to order 6x bottles of his antibiotics.
Fourth attempt (day 26) medication still was not available to order. I asked if there was anything we could do about this, like a different brand or size of tablet? It was communicated that there wasn’t. I asked about the antibiotic and I was given 2 bottles, I asked about the 4 others. I got told that they had been delivered, I explained I had not received them. She explained that it had been signed off on their system and communicated I must have had them. I was fuming by this point and decided to go home and check the dates on the medication I had, due to doubting myself.
On the last bottle was a December date not February.
Before I could call the pharmacy, they rang me to discuss the current issue as I had communicated whilst in store that I was unhappy with the service due to the lack of communication and thinking outside of the box.
It became clear that the prescription had not been put in for the antibiotics 2 weeks ago by the casher that served me today, the 2 bottles received was outstanding from December’s prescription.
Then she explained that the liver tablets could be dispatched, but the tablets would need cutting in half as the mg dose was twice the strength.
A simple solution to a problem that was blown out of proportion, which has caused much unnecessary stress over the last few weeks.
As many of our community know, Transplanted recipients are in some ways living on borrowed time.
Organ donation is not a cure for their illness but an organ can prolong their lives.
Some recipients may have one, as others may have multiple transplantations.
These organs are precious and limited.
To the point some spend years waiting for a match.
And some gain their wings whilst waiting.
These organs are gifted by the most selfless human beings.
Some being live donors as others are deceased.
To give others like Billy a second chance of life.
The organ is a huge part of the puzzle, but without the medical staff the organ is useless.
The care and attention it takes to get to transplant is a work up in itself.
The assessments, the judgement calls, the interventions to keep the patient fit, is truly a well-played game.
Then, if all the stars a line you receive THE CALL.
Then the journey starts, ambulance or you may be an inpatient but often unlikely.
You arrive, the work up to get the patient ready, wait and more waiting.
But, behind the scenes the medical staff have already been working for hours, matching organ to patient, extracting, transporting against the clock.
Then it’s time to say, see you soon and you hope that they come through this mammoth operation.
While the parents fill their time, mainly twiddling their fingers and not knowing what to do with themselves.
The surgeons are working relentlessly against the clock to perform their miracle.
Then we are presented with our love one.
No guarantees, just hope.
These small tablets look insignificant to the naked eye, but once inside they perform miracles by helping their body work effectively with the foreign object.
For some, a couple of days of missed medication wouldn’t be seen as problem, but for others this could be a death sentence if done regularly.
Like most, we have missed doses on occasions when life gets busy, but not intentionally.
The reason for these straight words are not to be unkind, but to preserve Billy’s life.
As I feel, I owe it to Billy, his donor and the NHS to respect and look after this gift of life.
Remember you may not feel strong but you are
Love
The Rose-Tinted Mum
The Rose Tinted mum 