Non payment of Locum Fees

[Ally]

Just wanted your thoughts. As a newby i did a locum over 6 months ago and have not being paid.

Basically the pharmacy was a tip and the manager/owner had gone sick with all the rxs locked up. I phoned the society for general advice as i was concerned about dispening owings etc of which they advised not to dispense anything without a prescription. This was my general feeling anyway and my gut instict was right as a found a note left by the locum the previous day. The pharmacist had dispensed the wrong drug and the doctor called asking them to sort it out.

Anyway this all took place first thing in the morning. I rang the owner/partner of the other shop and said i wouldn't be doing owings, can you get a etc etc etc. Finally i offered to stay until they found a replacement locum.

6 months on and numerous invoices later no payment. I haven't found the pda useful at all as they just keep sending them invoices. Obviously this particular person is receieving them but keeps denying this. I have no proof of postage because mistakenly i thought this was an honest profession!

Anyway i am looking to send them a final demand (next day delivery signed for of course!) giving them one months notice before persuing this via the small claims court. I should point out that i rang the person in question months ago and he started shouting and threatening to report me to the society because i did not dispense the owings and how long he had been a pharmacist. In my professional opinion i made the right decision based on that day but found the manager nothing but a bully. I did try say that if he was going to report me why he had not done so already and was this just a ploy not to pay me (yes fuel to the fire). But all i got was that he was and experienced pharmacist. I guess i was suppose to feel that cause i was a newby the society would automatically take his side???

I am very willing to pursue this because (a) i gave them plenty of opportunity to get a locum (short notice but after years of practice im sure they could have found someone) and (b) found there behaviour very threaten.

The way i see it, if your hauled up in front of the society you have to be able to justify your own decisions right? Im sure telling them that the shop assistant (no she wasnt trained) telling me what to do wont wash.

Any thoughts?

[the old merlin]

Case as stated, Ally, you'd be entirely within your rights to go to the Small Claims Court.

And, from the sound of it, I wouldn't worry too much about the RPSGB. Normal practice, so far as I know, if for the local Inspector to interview both parties in such a case.
However, the big plus point you have is that you 'phoned the Society and asked for advice. That will, presumably, be recorded. So, if this owner is sufficiently ill-advised to report you he will find that the authorities already have a critical note about him.
Secondly, if he has been a pharmacist for a long time, and has ben an owner for much of it, if the pharmacy was a tip when you got there, there might well have been occasions where the Inspector had issued some sort of written advice to him. Or even a warning.

In fact, you could argue that you could get your retaliation in first!
Going sick isn't a crime. Having a dispensary where a new pharmacist can't get access to necessary documents etc is. Why didn't the "partner at the other shop" or whatever he was, just arrange for the duplicate key (must be one) to be sent over?
I'm not sure I entirely agree with not dispensing any owings if there's a proper record of what was owed, but I can understand, given that the place was, you say, a mess, why you took the view that you did. You took the proper advice, too, based on what you saw at the time.
However, in the circumstances while I can well imagine that the partner or whatever he was, was, at the time, cross, threatening and bullying after the event is unprofessional and worthy in itself of a complaint by you to the RPSGB. Especially as you have not been paid!

If you want to PM me with a bit more detail, feel free.

[lamzee]

How long were you in the shop before the replacement locum arrived? Do they owe you for the whole day?

[Ally]

Thanks for the replies.

This was one of my first locums so i took the decision of not dispensing owings based on what i saw that day. I'm not going to say i would make the decision again but you live and learn. What the society had to say is that if you must satisfy yourself that a valid prescription is in place and has been legally and professionaly checked. For example, is a patient always has levo 25mcg and the rx is for levo 50mcg. You may make the mistake of assuming the patients medication hasn't changed. Therefore you create an owing. The error is made worse as your dispensing from the owing slip. As the second pharmacist if anything went wrong you would take a proportion of the responsibility.

I agree with this as mistakes can and will happen. Especially in a this dispensary were the pharmacist is both dispensing and checking. Ive always been taught to create your own checking procedures. In this case dispensing from the owing means you get another chance to check.


I never did get an reason why there was no duplicate key. Ive worked for nearly all the big chains and most independants and as bad as the staff some times are, keys are always available. In fact some shops ive worked for give me keys for the safe, tills the lot!

They owe me for the whole day as they never got a replacement. But since they didn't have any intention of paying me i now see why!

I'll keep this thread updated for anyone else finding themself in this position

[Pharmanaut]

Thanks for the replies.

This was one of my first locums so i took the decision of not dispensing owings based on what i saw that day. I'm not going to say i would make the decision again but you live and learn. What the society had to say is that if you must satisfy yourself that a valid prescription is in place and has been legally and professionaly checked. For example, is a patient always has levo 25mcg and the rx is for levo 50mcg. You may make the mistake of assuming the patients medication hasn't changed. Therefore you create an owing. The error is made worse as your dispensing from the owing slip. As the second pharmacist if anything went wrong you would take a proportion of the responsibility.

I agree with this as mistakes can and will happen. Especially in a this dispensary were the pharmacist is both dispensing and checking. Ive always been taught to create your own checking procedures. In this case dispensing from the owing means you get another chance to check.


I never did get an reason why there was no duplicate key. Ive worked for nearly all the big chains and most independants and as bad as the staff some times are, keys are always available. In fact some shops ive worked for give me keys for the safe, tills the lot!

They owe me for the whole day as they never got a replacement. But since they didn't have any intention of paying me i now see why!

I'll keep this thread updated for anyone else finding themself in this position

Just wondering if you could write the amount off as a bad debt against tax.
Anyone with accountancy knowledge better than mine advise on this?

Needless to say, never work for these people again!

[johnep]

At one time the old lds PMR would not let you rpt from the record. This was because errors had been repeated.
johnep

[the old merlin]

Ally, are you saying you worked all day and didn't get paid, or you walked out as you considered it unsafe and didn't get paid anything?

I can understand, although not sympathise with, your "employer's" view if the latter was the case, but if you worked all day, then they've no case whatsoever.

Or, do you mean that you walked out and the pharmacist in the other pharmacy was responsible for both pharmacies for the rest of the day? In that case you should definitely take it up with the Society.

[johnep]

Myself, I would write this one off to experience, but claim associated expenses, mileage etc against tax. If you are given advice in future, make sure take full name of person giving advice. May need to call them to give evidence in court.
johnep

[Ally]

This all took place in the morning. I turned up on time and worked the whole day. I made the owner/manager of both shops aware of the situation and my position as soon as i spoke to the society. This was when i offered to stay until they found a replacement. But yes i worked the entire day. I must say the society were very helpful and very clear cut in this case.

[johnep]

In that case PDA might issue a winding up order to close premises for good unless they pay. Very successful technique in past. If you do go to small claims court. Have the case at a court convenient to you but not owner. If he non attends, loses case.
johnep