Safeway Pharmacy — Local services in Bend

Gave me the wrong medication, blamed me for not checking it before I left, charged me anyway. The tech said she was tired of me and was not going to serve me and to never come back. I've gone there for 13 years, the pharmacist said I was not a regular customer and had no record of my medication. She said the doctor made a mistake by not checking a certain box. She said they could fill the Rx with any generic thyroid medication. I tried to tell her that you can't just change brands of thyroid meds without it affecting your TSH and your well being, but she kept talking over me, she said she was a doctor and she knew everything. I suggest you research this information Marie before you give out erroneous information. I was waiting on another medication that I had gone there twice for and they still did not have it ready. The tech refused to give it to me because she refused to serve me. I asked them if they were going to give me the medication I came back for. The pharmacist said in a frustrated tone, I am trying to fill it. Odd, because I had been there 2. hours prior and was told to come back in 30 minutes. She brings the medications, didn't show them to me or tell me what they were, just told me to pay x amount. I asked to see the bottles. This seemed to really rile her up. She picked up the bottles and aggressively shoved them very close to my face. I take two different doses of the same thyroid medication and now she has a dose with the correct medication. I noted that this was the correct medication, but the other one was different and people don't take two different kinds. Again, this was not an acceptable comment to Marie, her neck started to turn red and she said are you going to buy these or not. They did not show me the bottles with the first Rx, the tech charged me, put them in a bag and handed me the bag. The tech said she showed them to me and that she always shows them to everyone. I have never been shown the bottle at this pharmacy prior to being charged and then when I asked to see the bottle they came unglued. I will be calling corporate tomorrow to make a formal complaint. FYI they charged me $66. and it cost $20. at Walgreens with a goodrx card. Not sure if it's legal to deny me service because I complained about being charged for something that I was NOT made aware that they were changing the brand. The RX said Armour Thyroid not NP Thyroid, I had a picture of the Rx. These medications DO NOT deliver the same dose, they are NOT EQUAL. They strike out on accuracy, price, and customer service and...

I will never be stepping foot in this Safeway again. I had a flu vaccination appointment scheduled for 5:30pm and was not seen until well over an hour later. This was, without a doubt, the most unprofessional and disorganized healthcare experience I have ever encountered.

After checking in, I was taken with a few others into a small back room with chairs for patients awaiting vaccines. This room had a closed door, and the staff simply forgot we were back there. The man previously administering shots muttered something under his breath and left shortly after I sat down. At first, I thought he was on a short break, but he never came back. After waiting far too long, I went to the main pharmacy counter and alerted someone (who I believe was the pharmacist). He seemed shocked to discover there were still people waiting in the back. Only then did I learn that the vaccinator had left because he wasn’t going to be paid overtime. He told one technician, but she never informed anyone else or checked on us.

Instead of apologizing, the staff began blaming each other, and one woman mocked me for politely mentioning that patients were still waiting. This is despite the fact that I had already waited far longer than most people would before saying anything. This same woman then, with no visible ID badge, came to administer the vaccines. As a healthcare worker myself, I was alarmed by her conduct. She admitted that the previous vaccinator “does a much better job” than she does (a very unprofessional thing to say to patients). Even worse, I realized she put on gloves without washing her hands or using sanitizer.

It was unclear whether she was a pharmacist or a technician, as she wore no identification. I could not confirm whether she was even qualified to independently administer vaccines. What concerns me most is that she appeared to give vaccinations without a pharmacist present. I found that Oregon law (House Bill 2486, ORS 689.645) clearly states that a pharmacy technician may only administer vaccines under the supervision of a pharmacist, and that was not happening here.

From start to finish, this experience was unacceptable. Patients were forgotten in a back room, communication was nonexistent, basic hygiene protocols were ignored, and no one took accountability. I left feeling disrespected, unsafe, and appalled. I will never return to this pharmacy and strongly recommend that others look elsewhere...

Absolutely terrible pharmacy. I would avoid this spot at all costs. My family needed travel vaccines, and after waiting in a VERY long line I was told by a very rude technician they could only give one of the vaccines if I did an ADDITIONAL consult with their in-house doctor at a cost of $60 per person (there are three in my family), and I was also told by the pharmacist that nobody else in Central Oregon gave this vaccine (yellow fever). We still got a few others filled. When my son picked them up one was missing when he got home. When I realized this I decided that I didn't wanna have to go back and deal with this disaster again so I went to Costco instead. Costco was great to deal with and gave us the yellow fever vaccine same day that we were told by Safeway no one else had (at no additional cost).

HOWEVER, when Costco called over to get the other medication Safeway hadn't filled, they were told by Safeway that we did actually pick it up and sign for it (untrue), and at the same time admitted that it was still on the shelf for two of us. Instead of owning their mistake, they insisted that it must've just been issued twice and would not send over the prescription to Costco as they said we had it and had signed for it. I called Safeway about this and could not get through to speak to anyone, so I had to have my doctor re-issue the prescription, and because Safeway insisted we had picked it up already my insurance would not cover it so I had to pay $150 out of pocket.

These were only travel vaccines and luckily Costco was able to get this remedied, but I was shocked at the disorganization, mistakes and terrible customer service at this pharmacy. I can't imagine trusting them with any kind of important medical needs!

Thankful to Costco for helping me sort this mess out as...