Pharmacy Direct review: Slow/non-delivery of medication: 5C7B76 / EC Louw

I e-mailed an amended script to Pharmacy Direct on Tuesday, 15 August 2023. The very same day I received an automated e-mail confirming "contact" with Pharmacy Direct. Only on Thursday, 17 August did I received an SMS acknowledging receipt of my amended script. The problem was that my GP made a mistake by prescribing 3 Colchicine tablets instead of 30 hence the amended script. When I sent the amended script I informed Pharmacy Direct that I was about to go away for a few days and asked if there was a possibility that the balance could be delivered on Wednesday, 16 August, (I did not think it could be done though) but I received no response. I fortunately had sufficient tablets to see me through the few days I was away. I returned home today to find that no delivery was made. When I called I spoke to Sunè and she first told me that I had not submitted a new script until I told her that I received an acknowledgement of receipt. Then she said it was acknowledgement of payment until I told her that I also received that particular SMS also on the 17th - when I was already gone. Then she was going to check with Fortune to see whether they had the script but said nothing had been loaded and I should have uploaded the amended script via the member portal because it is quicker. Sunè has just called me back to say that they do actually have the script and will send the balance out by priority delivery.

I want to know why Pharmacy Direct offers an e-mail service for submitting scripts if it is not getting proper attention? What happens to people (older and retired people) who do not have access to the internet? How are they supposed to submit their scripts if they cannot do it via e-mail? I have previously found the member portal problematic anyway and stopped using it. Even if I click on the member portal tab, it freezes on the next screen and I have to keep going back and forth before I can do anything.

Granted that the original problem was an error by my own GP but that does not excuse the fact that no attention was given to my e-mail and if I had not followed up one week later, it probably would have gone unnoticed.

Poor service indeed.