by Corky von Texasheim

Created on: June 21, 2008

Kristin Wiig plays a hysterical character on Saturday Night Live called "The Target Lady." She speaks in a strange voice, and makes constant comments about what the patrons of her local Target store are buying, occasionally walking away from her register to buy one of the same products.

I'm imagining a similar situation where someone is making comments not only about a very personal part of one's life, their sexuality and choice of family planning method, but also wondering how someone can call themselves a pharmacist, much less get a pharmacy license, while refusing to sell basic pharmaceutical items.

I understand the moral dilemma of medical students who have a problem with abortion. So, these young doctors decide early on in their careers not to be abortion providers. Pharmacists are not the same thing. Besides antibiotics, birth control pills are probably the most widely prescribed form of drug in this country. And unlike a young medical student who has a choice about whether or not to provide abortions, pharmacy students know going into their profession what their job entails. Someone on the road to becoming a dermatologist, for example, knows that the chances of their even being asked to consider providing an abortion are quite low. Pharmacists, on the other hand, are not that specialized. Nobody can choose between being a "skin pharmacist" or a "family planning pharmacist" for example.

This would be like going to work at an adult book store, yet having a problem with girl-on-girl movies, and like Kristin Wiig's character, saying "Oh, Where'd 'ya get that" and then refusing to sell the DVD. Someone who has a problem with this type of pornography probably wouldn't choose to work at such an establishment.

Furthermore, what if I was a pharmacist with a great deal of personal family history concerning addiction. Would I then have the right to refuse to give people narcotic analgesics like codeine? "Oh, where'd 'ya get that codeine?" and then refusing to fill the prescription?

What if I have a basic problem as a pharmacist trained in medical sociology with the overprescribing of antibiotics: ask clients "Are you sure you need that amoxicillin?" and then refusing to fill it due to my own moral code?

If a pharmacist, or future pharmacist, has a moral problem with filling prescriptions for birth control pills, perhaps they would be better served working with Kristin Wiig's fantastic character at their local Target stores, selling bathroom potpourri and Hannah Montana watches.

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