Walk Across the Street to Shoppers Drug Mart

I transferred to High Gate Pharmacy from Shoppers Drugs as I thought that it would be easier for my mother's care giver to work with one pharmacist. It was the biggest mistake that I made. You would think that a small pharmacy would provide more personalized customer service than a huge chain like Shoppers Drug Mart. But I found autocratic, inflexible, strident store policies set by the pharmacist that trumped the compassionate customer service that I received at Shoppers Drugs.

For any care giver of a dying elderly parent, you know how stressful and how over stretched you become.

For income purposes I asked the pharmacist to mail my mom's 2012 statement of medications. He refused to mail it citing privacy concerns. I asked if I could send a courier at my expense to pick it up or have it sent by registered mail by his assistant, again at my expense for both her time and the postage but the answer was always no. There was no flexibility or compassion even when I explained my circumstances. The only person who could pick it up was me or my dying disabled mom. So I drove from South Surrey to South Burnaby wasting 2 1/2 hours.

If this were a policy of the BC Pharmacists Association or other pharmacies like London Drugs or Shoppers Drugs I would understand. But it is not! I have received the same statements from both and other pharmacies on many occasions.

I can only conclude that the pharmacy hides behind privacy concerns so that they do not have to go the extra mile for their customers.

This pharmacy deserves a score of 10 out of 10 for counting pills but a big fat 0 for creating policies that serve customers needs or the flexibility to review and bend when a policy doesn't work for a costumer.