But My Doctor Said He Sent It!

...But I watched him send it...
There are no more terrifying words in the world of retail pharmacy. (Ok, "can you look at this rash?" is a close second.) In the world of electronic prescribing, where perfect prescribers prepare perfect prescriptions, everything is wonderful. "Please don't tell me everything is wonderful now..." In the Utopian world that was sold to us healthcare professionals by the e-script services, there would be no errors. According to prescribers, who apparently received a different, additional memo, the prescriptions are not only transmitted to the pharmacy in nanoseconds, but are filled instantaneously there as well.
As you are all well aware, I'm here to tell you that this world only exists in prescribers' heads; and they are never to blame.
Yesterday was a day like all the rest. Birds singing on my shoulder and helping me put on my smock, mice singing as they tie my new Under Armour shoes. Yes, it was a Disney type of morning...until the phone rang.
Impatient Lady: Is my prescriptions there yet? My doctor said he sent it.
CP: No. We are all caught up on our prescriptions. It's not on voicemail, e-scripts, fax, or pneumatic tube.
IL: He said he sent it. I was there in the room with him. I WATCHED HIM SEND IT!
CP: Oh, in that case it must be here. Let me check my other inboxes...nope, not in the Pony Express satchel, it's not on the teletype, no Morse Code or telegrams, and the smoke signals have been down all morning but I'm pretty sure it's not there.
IL: I'll call back later.
CP: Yes, I know you will.

<Later (17 minutes)>
IL: Is it there yet?
CP: Nope. Not even via candygram.
IL: Are you sure?
CP: What is this, a deodorant commercial? Yes, I'll raise my hand if I'm sure if that'll help.

<Later (23 minutes)>
IL: How about now?
CP: Nada.
IL: But I watched him send it.
CP: You keep saying that. Let me ask you this: Did you see WHAT he typed?
IL: No.
CP: Did you see WHERE he sent it?
IL: No.
CP: Did you ask them, any of the last 3 calls you made to them, WHERE THEY SENT IT?
IL: No.

<Later (4 minutes)>
Office Lady: Calling in a prescription for IL.
CP: What happened to the one she saw him send?
OL: Oh, he sent it to the wrong pharmacy.
CP: And you could not have figured that out sooner? A simple little, "Yes we sent it at 12:56pm to Little Big Horn Pharmacy and got a confirmation that it was received" would have helped straighten that out since I am CP Pharmacy. Simply telling the patient "yeah, we sent it" is not good enough. Do you have any idea how much of my time was wasted talking to this lady because your office can't get their act together? How many people in your office talked to her without tracking this down for her? Instead of simply resending it to me, you had to call me, take me away from another task, to give me a prescription that, had it been done correctly any time in the last hour, would have already been filled and waiting for her. Oh, I don't suppose you told her you sent it to the wrong pharmacy, did you? Or are you going to leave me hanging out to dry as the inept one in this debacle?
OL: You can tell her that if you like.
CP: I shall, but she likely won't believe me. She didn't believe me when I told we didn't have it, what makes you think I'm getting off the hook that easy? Prescribers are always Teflon Dons...