Rite Aid

This location was recently remodeled, so everything looks nice and new. The shelves are well stocked and I was able to find everything I had gone there for. The staff is very upbeat and helpful as well. I heard recently that Walgreen’s will be taking them over in the near future, so I hope that transition doesn’t affect any of those good points.
They have also ditched their previous rewards system and now participate with Plenti which is a rewards card also used by other retailers. So you can earn and use points at many different brands which is cool.

I’ve lived in this neighborhood for about 8 – 9 years now and have been going to this store for awhile. I like the store so I hate to give it such a low rating because of the pharmacy. However, one of the employees in the pharmacy needs to go to charm school. I am always very nice and never give them a hard time but this one woman seems to put on a fake smile and I’ve heard her, loudly, talk about customers in a very bad, nasty way. Loud like I’m down an aisle or two, not waiting by the pharmacy. Every time I go. Is she talking about me? Are we in 5^th grade? I thought I was going to pick up some medication.
Today I was in a bit of a rush and went to the drive thru. I understand it was busy inside but after she saw me, she obviously and passive aggressively did everything she could do to NOT help me, walked away several times to do something else, and make me wait. Even asking me about another customer who dropped off a prescription at the drive thru and leaving. I don’t care. I’m in my own car. I’m not there for anyone else. The person drove off so MOVE ON to the next person. This even after I gave her my name and I was picking up. Her name is Carol. Everyone else in the pharmacy who has assisted me has been nothing short of professional. Except her. Every time. It’s to the point that I am relieve when someone else assists me. Going to the pharmacy can be a very personal and sometimes embarrassing enough of a visit where customers need to be treated with respect, dignity, and compassion. She doesn’t exhibit any of those qualities.
The other Rite Aid Pharmacy on Sunrise Highway in Lindenhurst was decent until I paid attention to what they were doing and realized they never used gloves when handling anyone’s pills and I caught them using a dirty pill tray (it had some kind of dirt, lint, or something all over it) on my last and final visit. I brought it to their attention and they all looked incredibly guilty and scurried around with their heads down when I asked them to clean the tray and they proceeded to clean it with a USED RAG. How do I know those pharmacy employees didn’t just use the bathroom and not wash their hands before handling something people will be ingesting? How do I know I am safe to not catch something from them? Is it just that Rite Aid Pharmacy has a practice of hiring substandard pharmacy employees?