Into the thick of it

Fall is here and I am here for it! Tis the season for hot tea, apple cider and pumpkin spice everything. I’m breaking out the cozy sweaters and the boots and enjoying one of nature’s finest displays. However, ‘tis also the season for viruses—cold, influenza, and corona. We all know it’s looming (or here!) and pharmacy technicians, along with a variety of other healthcare professionals, are getting ready to head into the thick of it. Between the flu shots that will need to be administered (and COVID-19 vaccines if your pharmacy is receiving them), potentially sicker patients with virus season upon us, “snowbirds” getting their vacation supplies, and staffing shortages, are you feeling like your workload is about to double? Triple? Quadruple? Do you feel pressured to work overtime? To go to work even if you’re not feeling 100%? Heck, if you’re not feeling 50%? What about pressure to stay away from germs and to stay healthy so you don’t miss work? So you don’t pass anything on to patients? This is a lot to unpack. Read: What's in a name? Pharmacy is always busy, whether you’re in community, hospital, or long-term care. Community pharmacy (which has my heart—I love working in community pharmacy) has a bit of a reputation for being short-staffed, but I am hearing from my tech friends in hospital, that hospital pharmacies are facing that same challenge. And it’s not always that the pharmacy doesn’t have a sufficient staffing compliment, but we are getting sick. Of course we’re getting sick—we're human too! Plus, if we’re working longer hours in a day or more days in a week, we are not going to be able to fight off infections as well. But we do it. We work the longer hours; we work more days. Because we feel bad if we don’t. We don’t want our other co-workers to suffer on their shifts, so we help out. We don’t want our patients to not receive their medications or vaccines, so we show up. But what’s the cost? I’m not purporting to have the answers here. I'm just “thinking out loud” about what I’m hearing from pharmacy friends and wondering how the next few months are going to pan out. Read: Leaning into the scary In Ontario, there is talk of re-instating masking mandates. This morning on the radio they interviewed a doctor at an Ontario hospital who said we’re heading into the “perfect storm” for viruses to spread, especially since we’ve had 2 years with not a lot of exposure to anything, and looking at more respiratory infections. With staffing shortages affecting health care in a big way in Ontario right now, how much more can our health care system take? How much more can you take, pharmacy tech friends? Here’s what I know. You will take it. You will do it. Because you are health care professionals and because you care. You care more about your patients than they know. But don’t forget to take care of yourselves too—whatever that may look like. Be “selfish” sometimes. Also know that your self-care is really not being selfish! And if anyone gives you grief about it, just say it was in a pharmacy article! (They don’t need to know it’s just a blog!). Give each other some grace when a pharmacy team member calls in sick. Take care of each other. So, grab your favourite hot beverage, put on your coziest sweater and your most comfortable boots, and go enjoy the beauty of fall while you can—before we all head … into the thick of it. Sarah-Lynn Dunlop is a pharmacy technician practising in community pharmacy in Collingwood, Ont., and a full-time faculty member at Georgian College in Barrie, Ont. Read: Choosing wisely for patients—and the planet

Into the thick of it

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