Blowing a trumpet... but not my own

I feel compelled to sing the praises of my mother's local pharmacy. The Naim Pharmacy, located in the same complex as Mum's GP, (2a/124A Epping Road North Ryde) is owned and run by Joe and Charbel Naim, two brothers who are both pharmacists.

Joe and Charbel took over the pharmacy a number of years ago, before the construction of the purpose-built medical centre complex where it's currently located. The previous pharmacist had been very well regarded by all her clientele, and when she was preparing to leave the business, predictions that no other pharmacist could possibly fill her shoes were common. But the reality is that Joe and Charbel have not only filled her shoes, but well and truly exceeded her in the way they run their business.

Many of their customers are regulars, who are also patients of the GP located in the same complex. Every time I've gone into the pharmacy (which has been quite often since I've been here in Sydney), they always greet me by name (as they do to most people who enter the shop). They are often busy, but are never rushed. Every time I've had a prescription filled there, whether it's Joe or Charbel who serves me, they are very particular about going through the medications that they have dispensed, so I know that what I'm getting is what was on the prescriptions. They have also been very good at pointing out side effects and possible interactions to look out for, especially when Mum was recently prescribed a new medication, and Charbel queried it with me, as he said there might be an interaction with one of the other drugs she was on.

But the thing I'm most excited about right now is the great PBS refund I just received from Medicare. Although most of my visits to Joe and Charbel are to fill prescriptions for Mum (who has well and truly reached the Medicare Safety Net, so gets most of her meds free now), I do have two medications I take on a regular basis, which cost me around $35 each. One day when I paid the $70 to get my two prescriptions filled, I happened to mention to Charbel that I had applied to Centrelink for Carer Payment and was looking forward to the receipt of my Pensioner Concession Card, which would entitle me to cheaper prescriptions ($5.80, as opposed to $35). He said that it would be likely that when I received the card, it would be back-dated, so I should come in and get tax invoices for any prescriptions I'd paid full price for after that date so I could claim the difference back from Medicare.

I had no idea that this would be possible, and wouldn't have thought anything of it if Charbel hadn't mentioned it to me. So after receiving my Pension Concession Card yesterday, I went in to see Charbel, who printed out receipts for all of the prescriptions I'd had filled since 23 July (which was the start date of the card). He also printed out the relevant Medicare claim form and gave me advice on how to fill it in.

So today I toddled off to the local Medicare office, and processed the claim, and for 6 different items, I received a refund of $105. I was very impressed, and grateful to Charbel for taking the initiative to tell me of the entitlement to claim for those prescriptions.

Now at one level, the kind of service that Joe and Charbel provide is nothing extraordinary, and merely what one would expect from a local pharmacist, but I don't think any other pharmacy I've been to has been that good. The way Joe and Charbel have cared for Mum (and for me since I've been here) has been exemplary, and we really appreciate the 'extra mile' that they often seem willing to go. So I wanted to acknowledge how amazing they are, and encourage anyone in this neck of the woods to support their business.

I've commented before how blessed we have been by the wonderful professional people God has sent to care for Mum- the various doctors who have treated her, the community nurses who visit us at home, the palliative care team from Greenwich Hospital, and the staff from Catholic Community Services, who provide domestic and counselling services. Joe and Charbel are certainly right up there with all of these people, as one (or two) of the greatest blessings we have in professional care for Mum.