Pharmacists Save Lives Too

Last night was an incredibly busy day at the CVS where I work. It was only a 5-hour shift, but Mondays are always busy. From 8 to 10 PM, it was just myself and my pharmacist, but we were able to manage decently. It was a few hours before I was able to take a bite of dinner, or even go to the bathroom. But that's the life of community retail.

Around 8:30PM, a mother and her daughter approached the counter asking where the Benadryl was. Before pharmacy school, when it was busy and a patient asked me where something was, I would point them to the aisle and get back to my work. However, it seems that my way of thinking has changed completely from getting tasks accomplished, to maximizing health outcomes. 

We are taught in school systematic approaches to asking patients questions in order to extract the most appropriate information.

Me: Are you looking for tablet or liquid?

Mother: Probably liquid because my daughter says she is having trouble swallowing.

I turn to the daughter, and say: Do you feel like your throat is closing up?

Daughter: Yes

Me: Have you eaten anything recently? Or come into contact with anything foreign?

Daughter: I had something with peanuts.

Me: When did you eat it?

Daughter: About 5 minutes ago

It was at that point I immediately got the pharmacist to assess her. She was unaware she had any food allergy, but it was clear she was going through anaphylactic shock. We offered to call 911 for her, but she was refusing (some sort of psychological trauma from her past, when her grandmother died in an ambulance). Instead, we had her sit in the waiting room for about 20 minutes after she drank 4 tablespoons of Benadryl to monitor her status. 

We debated taking an EpiPen off the shelf to use for her, but my pharmacist wasn't quite sure because she wasn't aware she had any allergy at all. So instead, we called Urgent Care centers to see if they were still open. We found a couple and gave her the phone number/address, and they drove off. 

This may not sound as exciting to you all, but when I think about how I could have just told her where the Benadryl was and let her go off, she could have been in a very bad situation. 

Hey, pharmacists save lives too :) 

First 2 weeks of PY2

The first two weeks of PY2 have been a stressful test of the year to come. There have been lots of lecture, lots of organization responsibilities, and our first exam is already tomorrow!

But in the midst of all the work, there has been a lot of good times with great friends.

On the last day of summer was PY1 Orientation, where I was one of the many representing CAPS and all of its wonder. It was so nice seeing the new class, and introducing them to all of the organizations at the School.

That night was also the first Dose of Franklin! It was so much fun seeing everyone again after all summer apart; at the same time, it felt like there was never a break! It seems just like yesterday was my very first Dose.

Classes have been great so far; our therapy course right now is dermatology (which is what our test is tomorrow). It's exciting to go to work and waiting for someone to ask the pharmacist how to help treat their poison ivy symptoms (nerdy, I know). Next up! Diabetes. 

Phi Delta Chi rush has also been going on, and there are so many great potential pledges! I can't wait for bids to go out and the pinning ceremony this Friday! 

Until next time...

How-To: Make a Towel Bunny

If you've ever been on a cruise (and even if you haven't, now you know), each time you enter your room, you will find a towel animal hanging out on your bed. This summer, one of the classes on the ship was how to make some! So I thought I would share with you all how to make one! I'm not as good as the staff on board, but I tried my best. It's hard to explain in words how to make these, but hopefully the pictures help. Please leave a comment if you have any questions! 

Things you'll need:

1 large towel

1 medium-sized towel

Step 1: Place your large towel in a landscape position and roll the left and right ends to the center.

Step 2: Fold towel in half so that the crease is on the outside

Step 3: Twist the ends out a little bit (this will be the feet of your bunny). 

Step 4: Take 2 legs into each hand and pull outward (this part is hard to explain, try to follow the picture!).

Step 5: Put large towel aside. Now take your medium-sized towel and fold in half, landscape-wise, and have the folded side facing away from you. 

Step 6: Put your finger in the center of the top of your towel, take the bottom right corner of the towel, and pull straight down. Do not fold, just pull. 

Step 7: Repeat on the right side, and you will have something that looks like a bat. 

Step 8: Fold the top corner underneath, a couple of inches. 

Step 9: Fold the sides of the "bat" towards the center, like you did with the large towel. 

Step 10: Flip over the towel, and it will look like this! 

Step 11: Pull the ears down a little bit, and you have your bunny head! Place it on top of the large towel. 

Step 12: Accessorize! 

The class was provided as part of a campaign to sell their how-to book, Towel Creations. The campaign is part of a larger effort for Carnival Cruiselines to raise $1,000,000 for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital! I ended up buying it on the ship for $14.95, and 100% of the proceeds were donated.