If I had someone to collect it - I would be sending them!

mumofmadboys

Would you mind ferry 23 if a neighbour asked you to pick up a script? Most people are only too willing to help.

As long as I had some telepathic skill that would allow me to know that a neighbour was stuck indoors having trouble moving from one room to another let alone get dressed, get out of the house and start knocking on random doors - of course not.

Someone who is housebound would likely not know many neighbours
Some with depression - ditto
Someone who lives in a road with mostly short-term renters
Someone at work all day, working a long way away from work

There are lots of people who don't have the phone numbers of their neighbours

Would you mind ferry 23 if a neighbour asked you to pick up a script? Most people are only too willing to help.

They may not have a legal responsibility but they have a moral one - offering a service and then reneging on it at the 11th hour is very bad practice, particularly when dealing with medication.

I am not "lucky" - there are very few pharmacies that don't deliver these days and they offered me the service - I didn't ask for it,

You seem to be suggesting that it's my fault for expecting to receive a service I signed up for and not "making friends" with my new neighbours.

Thank goodness for those businesses who don't let their customers down nor expect customers to rely on their neighbours when they don't deliver as promised. That wouldn't be much of a business model would it?

Pharmacies have no legal responsibility to deliver. You are lucky they normally do deliver. If a neighbour asked you to pick up a script normally I'm sure you would be pleased to help. Ask a neighbour, give someone a chance to do a good turn and start to get to know the local people.

Our What’s App road group is great. Shares information and requests for various things are regularly posted. Would definitely recommend asking around to see if your Road has one.

ferry23

N4nna

‘It’s really their responsibility to have a back up plan, not mine.’ Why is it their responsibility? Maybe join social media groups (Nextdoor.co.uk or of course Facebook usually have a local community group) for where you live… there is always someone that would be able to help, or point you to someone that might.

Because they are providing the service upon which people rely - not me.

What's the point in offering a service that people sign up to and not have a plan B in place in case things go awry?

If your train was cancelled would you have back up or would you be asking people you hardly know to get you to your destination?

I agree ferry23

I'm shocked that a pharmacy that had promised to deliver urgent pain meds felt it acceptable to leave an immobile patient in pain for 4 days.

A broken-down van presumably has a garage that may or may not have a courtesy car. Could 111 not have helped out? Obviously there are occasions when an individual has no accessible person to turn to

Silverbrooks

Ah, so ordinarily there would have been family members around who live closer. So you had the frustration of everyone being elsewhere, the pharmacy not being able to deliver and the pain.

I do know how much my friend suffers with this. They look forward to cherry season as it’s a fruit that is known to lower the risk of attack. Meantime, I treat them to Biona Organic Tart Cherry Juice which I buy from Holland & Barrett. It’s not cheap but at least I know they have something in the cupboard to try to keep the attacks at bay when the fresh fruit is out of season - until they go and eat something they know will trigger an attack! Seafood and beer are two of their triggers. They live by the seaside where seafood stalls abound. Sometimes they can’t resist something from a stall washed down with a beer and then wish they hadn't!

Thanks Silverbrooks, I was reading about sour cherries over the weekend. I shall head over to Holland & Barrett's website and get some. And maybe plant a cherry tree!

N4nna

‘It’s really their responsibility to have a back up plan, not mine.’ Why is it their responsibility? Maybe join social media groups (Nextdoor.co.uk or of course Facebook usually have a local community group) for where you live… there is always someone that would be able to help, or point you to someone that might.

Because they are providing the service upon which people rely - not me.

What's the point in offering a service that people sign up to and not have a plan B in place in case things go awry?

If your train was cancelled would you have back up or would you be asking people you hardly know to get you to your destination?

Of course ferry 23. X

Ah, so ordinarily there would have been family members around who live closer. So you had the frustration of everyone being elsewhere, the pharmacy not being able to deliver and the pain.

I do know how much my friend suffers with this. They look forward to cherry season as it’s a fruit that is known to lower the risk of attack. Meantime, I treat them to Biona Organic Tart Cherry Juice which I buy from Holland & Barrett. It’s not cheap but at least I know they have something in the cupboard to try to keep the attacks at bay when the fresh fruit is out of season - until they go and eat something they know will trigger an attack! Seafood and beer are two of their triggers. They live by the seaside where seafood stalls abound. Sometimes they can’t resist something from a stall washed down with a beer and then wish they hadn't!

‘It’s really their responsibility to have a back up plan, not mine.’ Why is it their responsibility? Maybe join social media groups (Nextdoor.co.uk or of course Facebook usually have a local community group) for where you live… there is always someone that would be able to help, or point you to someone that might.

Something similar happened to us during Covid. My husband is vulnerable and really needed his various heart failure medication but the local chemist simply made no attempt to deliver it and didn't even offer us an apology. A neighbour on our WhatsApp group kindly picked it up for us.

Vito

Sorry you're having such a tough time of it ferry. Gout is agony. Just incase (hopefully not) you find yourself in a similar predicament you could ask a local taxi firm to pick it up for you.
Hope you feel better soon 💐

Was just coming to say this, if you can afford it, get a taxi to collect/drop it off. Years ago I would never even thought of that, now it's so commonplace!

Also get yourself on your local "spotted wherever" Facebook group , i
Ours is very helpful /useful for a of things.

Oh yes Silverbrooks, gout is horribly painful!

I have read up on it so I can be aware what may trigger it and my GP send me some links to information about it.

It was definitely a"perfect storm" situation. Late in the afternoon. Me barely being able to move and feeling pretty rubbish. I moved here to be nearer to family but as luck would have it one cousin was sitting in A & E with her husband who snapped his Achilles Tendon, another away for a few days, my Godson at a conference in London and his wife working and I know she doesn't get home until late on a Friday.

One of those times where everything for me was against me!

Thankfully my further away cousin stepped up for me yesterday and I've been able start the medication.

I do think it’s your responsibilty to have a back up plan. I have lived alone for 20 years and have no family. I have good neighbours but they aren’t always around. Most are away this weekend.

If I had been that desperate I would have gone and collared the postman, a delivery driver or a passer by. Most people will go the extra mile for someone in trouble.

My local pharmacy delivers but it’s done by counter staff using their own cars. The broken down van might not belong to the pharmacy and they may not have the financial margin to hire a van - always assuming one could be found at such short notice as the weekend approached. Rates are higher for short notice bookings.

I have a friend who has gout. They know what foods trigger an attack but sometimes eat them anyway - and then find themeselves in agony with no meds in the cupboard until they can speak to a doctor for a repeat 'script. This happens so often, I no longer have sympathy.

They should have done better! Hope tablets are working.

Oldbat1

Hope you are feeling bit better. Since Covid we have a neighbourhood Whats App group. It works very well. Last week someone was looking for ladders and we were able to provide them. We have a few people receiving cancer treatment in our street and offers are posted from more able bodied to collect prescriptions etc. you just never know when help is needed and with family over 300miles away. Best wishes.

Our local WhatsApp group is very good and helpful too. Also started during Covid but continued, “The oldies” are kept an eye on- but I also was able to collect a prescription for a young family when everyone in the family had a vomiting bug ! Things get loaned out like extra chairs or tools . Make some enquiries around .

Gout is awful. I had it once, years ago. Hope you are sorted and you are feeling much better.

I would have a word with your GP and ask him to double up the prescription for a month so that you always have some extra in case this happens again.

Hope you are feeling bit better. Since Covid we have a neighbourhood Whats App group. It works very well. Last week someone was looking for ladders and we were able to provide them. We have a few people receiving cancer treatment in our street and offers are posted from more able bodied to collect prescriptions etc. you just never know when help is needed and with family over 300miles away. Best wishes.

You have moved to what appears to be quite a small village.
You haven't made any friends yet.
You have no back up plans .
You appear to be quite isolated.
I really think as soon as you recover you should try and make some contacts in the village.
Yes, the pharmacy could have done more to help you.

BlueBelle

Whilst I feel for you Ferry and totally understand your anger we who live alone have to have a back up plan
You haven’t lived there long so don’t know your neighbours it won’t help this time but I strongly urge you when you feel better to make an effort to introduce yourself and get to know some people around you

In this situation I would have rung and booked a taxi to collect your meds from the pharmacy yes it would have cost but necessary this time

When I moved here I changed from an online delivery service to the chemist in the village so that I was using a local business. Having never had a problem previously, it never occurred to me that I would need a "back up" plan - particularly with medication that is a need - not a want.

Whilst I understand why you're saying I need a back up plan, it's really their responsibility to have a back up plan, not mine.

We don't have a local taxi service any more, so many drivers swapped to supermarket delivery driving during covid and haven't returned. I did consider shelling out the £20+ it would have cost me but on this occasion it would have been too late in the day to get a taxi to the chemist and pick up before they closed.

I also had to move on my own and have no relatives anywhere nearby. I found the local community action group. They are the place to go to to find out what things are available in the locality and know all the things like where the doctors are and so forth. So I would definitely look into something like that when you are able to. It is very much a shared thing so now I help in various ways so that we all give and take . It has been a great starting point to find out information from who do you find is the best plumber, to filling in forms. Another area is if you are a church goer, there are usually volunteers or helpers attached to the church who could help. I used to be a voluteer car driver for many different things in my church.

Having moved a great deal, in Britian and abroad I do understand that difficult time but then as you make friends and get to know groups, then I have arranged with friends to have a spare key and so forth, so that we support each other and in cases of being locked out, or someone being ill having a key so that you can help is very worthwhile. Hoping that you are now feeling a bit better