A day in the life: Callen-Lorde Pharmacy
It’s 8:30 am on a late September day at the Callen-Lorde pharmacy in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan. Staff meet for the weekly huddle, which Danielle, the pharmacist-in-charge, leads. Today, she is discussing how to bill for flu shots and COVID vaccines in preparation for the pharmacy soon beginning to administer them. The huddles are opportunities for colleagues and leaders to interact, share goals, and work through any issues that may have recently occurred so they can learn and better work as a team.
At the pharmacy, there is a large integrated staff who work together throughout the day to provide customer service to their diverse patient population. All employees are trained in LGBTQ+ sensitivity and competency. The pharmacist-in-charge is responsible for supervising and managing staff and keeping items organized.
There are three Callen-Lorde pharmacies in all, in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and the Bronx. The Manhattan-Chelsea location is one of Maxor’s busiest. It is open to everyone, but specifically serves the LGBTQ community. “Some patients have no safe space to go,” Danielle says. “We are non-judgmental, and this is a place to make them feel comfortable. We use their preferred names. We will stand up for them and not question them. We are someone they can talk to, somewhere they can voice their concerns. They are treated well here.”
The pharmacy serves a large and varied patient population. “At some pharmacies, patients may not be treated as fairly as they should be. Their prescriptions are questioned. They are asked why they need the prescriptions,” says Danielle.
– Danielle, Pharmacist-in-ChargeI’ve had patients come back and thank me for helping them.
Teamwork is critical at the pharmacy. “Everybody has a spot, and we have a board that tells everyone where they need to go,” Danielle says. Each staff member has their specific role, like a baseball team with assigned positions. The concierge, who works outside the physical pharmacy, is like an air traffic controller, directing patients where to go to drop off and pick up their prescriptions. Pharmacy technicians handle a wide array of responsibilities. On any given day, a tech could assist patients at the drop-off and pick-up windows, answer phones, prepare medications, pull expired medications, set deliveries, and put orders away. The techs are patient-facing, and speak Spanish, Cantonese, Albanian, and Portuguese, to assist patients. For other languages, they use LanguageLine for translation.
The lead pharmacy tech, Sam, explains that his job includes placing medication orders, checking on inventory, scheduling, keeping the pharmacy clean, ordering supplies, and covering for those who may be out. Sam places a premium on efficiency. “We really want to get the prescription in and out, so the patient doesn’t have to wait,” he says.
The pharmacy works similarly to an assembly line. A patient drops off the prescription and from there, it moves down the line. Insurance is processed, necessary calls are made, and the prescription is filled. Then it will be shelved for pickup or prepared for delivery. “And we counsel every patient just like at any other pharmacy,” says Danielle. Additionally, the pharmacy administers a number of vaccines, including for the flu, COVID, RSV, and mpox.
Every day the pharmacy fills approximately 400 to 500 prescriptions. About 10% of those prescriptions are delivered- and they are delivered throughout all of New York and New Jersey.
Callen-Lorde’s pharmacy has a specialty patient management program and is accredited with a distinction in HIV by the Accreditation Commission for Health Care. All pharmacists are certified by the American Academy of HIV Medicine. Specialty pharmacy staff monitor patient medications and progress through a disease/condition-specific patient management program. This entails the clinical pharmacist developing individualized care plans for each patient and calling them each month to assess for adherence and adverse effects to medication therapy. If there is an issue, the primary care doctor or prescriber will be notified. This ongoing and regular communication is beneficial for everyone- it contributes to better relationships and healthier patients.
Several special programs are offered. There is a teen program called Health Outreach to Teens (HOTT) and a program for sex workers called Cecilia’s Occupational Inclusion Network (COIN). HOTT is a welcoming, non-judgmental, confidential program designed specifically to meet the needs of LGTBQ adolescents and young adults aged 13-24. COIN patients can be seen at the Callen-Lorde clinic, and any medications they need will be paid for at the pharmacy. Callen-Lorde also participates in the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program, which is a federal program that provides HIV care for those who are uninsured or underinsured.
Sam explains that they get to know their patients well. “Seeing a patient’s smile and seeing them feel better is meaningful,” he says. “It makes me feel that I did my job.” He tells the story of one patient who needs their testosterone filled every two weeks and how he manages it. He says, “I know when they are coming, and I know that some people get agitated. I anticipate their needs and get the meds ready, so they don’t have to wait.”
Danielle appreciates working at Callen-Lorde and being able to help the LGBTQ community. “I have had patients come back and thank me for helping them,” she says.
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