Good people make bad choices. That is a basic story of life, and it can happen at home or work. In today’s world, people and their misuse of prescription drugs is a regular feature heard on the nightly news. As an owner or manager of a pharmacy, you can sit on your “wait and hope” perch, or you have the choice to do something about it and take away some of the temptation. Alpha Rx Caps can provide you with added inventory security, as well as help stop a substance abuse issue from ever happening. The unfortunate truth is, besides stealing controlled drugs to sell on the street for money, in this business, you face the very real threat of an employee with a drug problem.
In many cases that I have been a part of investigating, it starts out with self medicating. The employee has chronic pain, has an accident, or is having a lot of stress at home. They want to come to work, so to help get them through the day, they skim a couple pills from a stock bottle off the shelf or a patient’s bottle. They justify this by telling themselves they will be a better employee and give you a better day’s work if they are not in pain or suffering from major anxiety. When a few pills are no longer enough, they will take more and more, possibly partial or whole bottles at a time. Any technician in your pharmacy can just grab a bottle off the shelf, conceal it, and get out the door in some fashion. You can have bag checks, lab coat checks, and detail inspection of every lunch box, but if you have an employee with an addiction, they will find a way to get what they need. Pill bottles can go out in the trash, shipping containers, or any other creative vehicles they can come up with. Alpha Rx Caps can be the solution to this issue because the bottles are locked shut and can only be opened with the provided magnet key. If the device is tampered with, it will alarm. If a bottle with an Rx Cap attached is removed from the designated area, it will alarm.
You would likely begin to notice changes in the employee’s behavior before you ever notice the missing pills. Although no specific behavior can define the problem, you need to be aware and willing to admit there may be an issue if the employee is suddenly acting different. They may begin coming in earlier than scheduled for shifts, or hanging around after their shift ended. Be aware if the employee visits the pharmacy on their day off, especially if they come back into the work area. They may volunteer to put away certain sections when a delivery arrives. Watch out for repeated visits to the restroom, or to their car. Be aware of an employee having visitors on a regular basis. Watch for changes in their physical appearance, constantly tired and sleepy, dark circles under their eyes, or even wired up and “twitchy”.
Rx Caps can be a great deterrent for this unfortunate problem that is pervasive in today’s world, at least for an actual pharmacy employee. If they know the bottles are locked up, they will be less likely to try to steal pills in the first place. And really, preventing the loss is what it is all about.
For more information contact us at: Antishoplifting.net or call 1.770.426.0547
