Some days as a locum pharmacist are quiet. You check scripts, counsel patients, maybe have a nice chat about vitamins. And then there are other days… where you transfrom in to A Super Hero Locum Pharmacist
The Lunch Rush Turns into a Medical Emergency
It was a typical lunchtime in a busy pharmacy — the kind where you can barely hear yourself think over the hum of customers and ringing phones.
Then I heard it:
“HELP!”
I spun around to see the staff in a panic. A man — not a regular, just someone passing by — had collapsed. Heart attack.
Everything stopped. I dropped the dispensing I was working on and bolted to his side.
Jumping into Action
We got him onto the floor. I cleared his airway and started mouth-to-mouth CPR.
He was an elderly man with… one tooth. One. Tooth.
Not ideal in the middle of resuscitation, but you don’t stop to think about dental arrangements when saving
a life.
“Tina — call the doctor!” I asked firmly.
“Nellie — get me a bucket!”
Nellie froze.
“A bucket… of water?”
“No! Just… an EMPTY bucket!”
“Empty? What for?”
“I think I’m going to throw up!”
The Longest Wait Ever
CPR is intense. Seconds feel like hours. I looked up, expecting Tina to be halfway back with the doctor… but she was just standing there.
“WHERE’S THE DOCTOR?!” I yelled.
“He’s busy,” she said.
“GET. HIM. NOW.”
Finally, the doctor arrived, looked at the patient, and casually said, “He’s gone.”
I refused to stop. We kept going until the ambulance arrived, and they took over.
The Twist Ending
I sat down afterwards, absolutely wrecked, hands shaking, sweat pouring. Took five minutes to breathe… then went right back to the dispensary like nothing happened.
Two weeks later… the man walked back into the pharmacy. Alive. Standing. Smiling.
He came over, shook my hand, and said, “Thank you.”
Locum Life – Expect the Unexpected
That day reminded me why being a locum means being ready for anything — from managing a lunchtime rush to saving a life on the pharmacy floor.
With Pharmacy SOS, locums get the flexibility, variety, and support to handle every situation — serious or side-splitting — while pharmacies get professionals they can rely on in the moments that matter most.
Because whether it’s filling scripts or performing CPR… we’ve got you covered.