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| The Family that Prays Together...Stays Together! |
| Bolden - Scruggs - Tucker - Searcy - Morris |
Reversing Trends Helps Save Taxpayer Dollars
Tribune staff writer Robin Toepp talked with Maxi Bolden, a pharmacist at Memorial Family
Pharmacy, about on-the-job complexities.
What kinds of medications are some of the most popular prescriptions?
Statin drugs for cholesterol, there's about three or four of them, antidepressants,
anti-ulcer drugs, then pain medication like Vicodin.
How do you spend your average day?
Right now, you are on the phone a lot, trying to solve problems with managed care, take
prescriptions -- around 300 prescriptions a day -- either handwritten or called-in
prescriptions. You are trying to process them through insurance and prescriptions are so
expensive right now, so anyone getting anything new (a newly released drug) is going to
need a drug card. So pharmacists are trying to fill prescriptions and comply with drug cards.
We spend a lot of time calling doctors back to explain alternatives. What really gets put on
the back burner is talking to customers about their drug therapy ... and explain the drug
questions to patients.
It sounds like there is a lot to do.
This gets real complex with the Medicare situation, what's covered, what's not covered.
Some days when I get off the phone with a drug card (company) and they've told me they
can't do this (fill a prescription) for a customer, I wonder why I am doing this, but I still
have a positive image of the profession. I am getting ready to send a letter out today, to a
woman whose son is on a lot of medication ... so we are helping them get a refund.
Do you hear a lot of customer complaints?
Yes, you take the brunt of it (criticism about prices and drug coverage). I have too many
people tell me, "I am sorry, I know it's not your fault."
You are under stress to provide something people are expecting.
What led you to pharmacy?
It was a fluke. My senior year in high school they had a career day. I didn't know any
pharmacists, but they listed some health professions on a survey, and I checked that one
(pharmacy). Shortly after, several pharmacists started a pharmacy explorers program at
Adams High School. From there, I picked a school that had a pharmacy program.
Where did you go?
Purdue University, graduated in May 1981
Was it a difficult degree?
Yes. I tell young people perseverance; have your head on and keep your nose to the
grindstone if you are going to do it. The first two years are really the most difficult. The
first year you have to keep your grades up to get admitted to pharmacy school. The next
year is difficult because you get hit with all of the stuff (introductory pharmacy classes.)
How big was your class?
Probably around 200, I am guessing, and there may have been double that amount trying to
get in, vying for the class.
How many years of study to get your degree?
It was five years, now it's a six-year program, and a state board certification test.
And what would a starting salary be like?
This would be conservative, between $75,000 and $80,000.
What was your first job?
It was with L.J. Perry of Perry's Pharmacy, a little independent pharmacy on Western
Avenue. For a couple of months I was with him at the pharmacy before I got my license,
then I took a job with the Indiana State Prisons at Westville Correctional Center. They
actually had a dispensary there, because it used to be a mental hospital and around that
time (1981) they converted it a medium-security prison. So we supplied the meds
(medications), the doctors would come in and write orders for medication, and we would
take care of that.
That must have been an unusual experience.
I really learned a lot about corrections at that time. It was very different. Whenever I had
to go behind those bars to get to the unit, being on the grounds, it was a very
enlightening experience.
Tribune staff writer Robin Toepp talked with Maxi Bolden, a pharmacist at Memorial Family
Pharmacy, about on-the-job complexities.
What kinds of medications are some of the most popular prescriptions?
Statin drugs for cholesterol, there's about three or four of them, antidepressants,
anti-ulcer drugs, then pain medication like Vicodin.
How do you spend your average day?
Right now, you are on the phone a lot, trying to solve problems with managed care, take
prescriptions -- around 300 prescriptions a day -- either handwritten or called-in
prescriptions. You are trying to process them through insurance and prescriptions are so
expensive right now, so anyone getting anything new (a newly released drug) is going to
need a drug card. So pharmacists are trying to fill prescriptions and comply with drug cards.
We spend a lot of time calling doctors back to explain alternatives. What really gets put on
the back burner is talking to customers about their drug therapy ... and explain the drug
questions to patients.
It sounds like there is a lot to do.
This gets real complex with the Medicare situation, what's covered, what's not covered.
Some days when I get off the phone with a drug card (company) and they've told me they
can't do this (fill a prescription) for a customer, I wonder why I am doing this, but I still
have a positive image of the profession. I am getting ready to send a letter out today, to a
woman whose son is on a lot of medication ... so we are helping them get a refund.
Do you hear a lot of customer complaints?
Yes, you take the brunt of it (criticism about prices and drug coverage). I have too many
people tell me, "I am sorry, I know it's not your fault."
You are under stress to provide something people are expecting.
What led you to pharmacy?
It was a fluke. My senior year in high school they had a career day. I didn't know any
pharmacists, but they listed some health professions on a survey, and I checked that one
(pharmacy). Shortly after, several pharmacists started a pharmacy explorers program at
Adams High School. From there, I picked a school that had a pharmacy program.
Where did you go?
Purdue University, graduated in May 1981
Was it a difficult degree?
Yes. I tell young people perseverance; have your head on and keep your nose to the
grindstone if you are going to do it. The first two years are really the most difficult. The
first year you have to keep your grades up to get admitted to pharmacy school. The next
year is difficult because you get hit with all of the stuff (introductory pharmacy classes.)
How big was your class?
Probably around 200, I am guessing, and there may have been double that amount trying to
get in, vying for the class.
How many years of study to get your degree?
It was five years, now it's a six-year program, and a state board certification test.
And what would a starting salary be like?
This would be conservative, between $75,000 and $80,000.
What was your first job?
It was with L.J. Perry of Perry's Pharmacy, a little independent pharmacy on Western
Avenue. For a couple of months I was with him at the pharmacy before I got my license,
then I took a job with the Indiana State Prisons at Westville Correctional Center. They
actually had a dispensary there, because it used to be a mental hospital and around that
time (1981) they converted it a medium-security prison. So we supplied the meds
(medications), the doctors would come in and write orders for medication, and we would
take care of that.
That must have been an unusual experience.
I really learned a lot about corrections at that time. It was very different. Whenever I had
to go behind those bars to get to the unit, being on the grounds, it was a very
enlightening experience.
Highlights From The 2007 Reunion Program Book
Pharmacy work becomes more
challenging…
SOUTH BEND -- Pharmacists are in big demand
these days, especially in the Midwest, where
new graduates are lured away to warmer parts
of the country to meet the demands of the
aging population.
But one area pharmacist seems content to stay
in the region to serve residents despite growing
demands in the profession.
challenging…
SOUTH BEND -- Pharmacists are in big demand
these days, especially in the Midwest, where
new graduates are lured away to warmer parts
of the country to meet the demands of the
aging population.
But one area pharmacist seems content to stay
in the region to serve residents despite growing
demands in the profession.