I recently had another great consultation with Dr. Calkins from Defy. We decided on Empower Pharmacy only for all medications. I'm usually a fairly patient person, but how long does it usually take for your orders to ship out? It's been 12 days since the consultation and order date, and it still says the order is pending. I contacted Defy this past Thursday but haven't heard back. I don't like to bother them, but just want to make sure everything went through okay.
Defy/Empower Wait Time?
- Thread starter Chris84
- Start date
Vince Carter
Banned
Dr Justin Saya MD
Moderator
Please call the office and speak to someone today as that is too long of a delay. I know Empower recently had inspections going on which may have slowed their day-to-day processes.
My last order for T-Cyp from Empower thru Defy was ordered and paid for on 12/29 and shipped on 1/3.... Something must have happened at Empower since they are normally pretty quick in getting orders out.
Dr Justin Saya MD
Moderator
Thanks, Dr. Saya. It looks like it won't be necessary now. Thank you
CoastWatcher
Moderator
Dr. Saya is correct. The thread referenced was closed after Nelson and I discussed it Sunday. At that point there were over 20 posts appended to the original, and it was felt that the point had been made and the issue discussed.
madman
Super Moderator
Inbox full
CoastWatcher
Moderator
Apologies. Cleared.
I really hate to pile on here, because on the whole my experiences with Defy have been positive, including with front-office staff, but my most recent delay is unsettling. I reordered testosterone, HCG, and anastrozole on the morning of January 11 (last Thursday). I received both the order confirmation email (stating that the order would be processed once medical staff reviewed) and the order processed email (stating that the order had been reviewed and now was in processing) within about an hour of placing the order, so before noon.
.
As of today, I had received no futher communication, so I called Defy and was told that my order was sent to Empower on January 15 (this Monday), and therefore is still within the 24-72 hour compounding window. When I asked about the 4 day delay in sending to the pharmacy, I was told that it wasn't sent until medical staff reviewed it. When I told her I received email confirmation last Thursday morning that medical staff had reviewed and processed the order, she didn't really have a response other than to say "sometimes it takes a day or two after medical staff reviews for us to send to Empower." To make matters worse, she informed me that Empower was closed yesterday because of weather in Houston and didn't reopen until about an hour ago and was pretty backed up on orders.
.
So, just to be clear, apparently the 24-72 hour compounding window begins when Defy sends the order to Empower, which can take several days (4 days in my case). I took my last HCG shot yesterday, my last AI will be taken tonight, and I've got maybe a dose or two worth of test left. At this point, considering my order still hasn't been shipped, the best case scenario is that I get the meds sometime middle of next week, or 12-14 days after placing the order. That means I'll go at least a week without the AI and HCG and miss at least one test injection, and perhaps more.
.
I understand that I'm not going to drop dead or turn into a giant ball of estrogen in a week, but when treatment like this demands consistency and steady blood levels, this kind of delay is disheartening, especially to someone only a few months into treatment. I pleaded my situation with the rep I spoke with, but was told there was nothing she could do since the order already was with Empower and she couldn't do aynthing to speed it up.
.
I guess the lesson is to assume at least 2 weeks for the meds to arrive from the time you order, and plan accordingly. Prior orders with Defy have moved much more smoothly (my first test/HCG/AI order arrived only 4 days after placing the order), but based on this thread and others things are moving more slowly right now.
.
As of today, I had received no futher communication, so I called Defy and was told that my order was sent to Empower on January 15 (this Monday), and therefore is still within the 24-72 hour compounding window. When I asked about the 4 day delay in sending to the pharmacy, I was told that it wasn't sent until medical staff reviewed it. When I told her I received email confirmation last Thursday morning that medical staff had reviewed and processed the order, she didn't really have a response other than to say "sometimes it takes a day or two after medical staff reviews for us to send to Empower." To make matters worse, she informed me that Empower was closed yesterday because of weather in Houston and didn't reopen until about an hour ago and was pretty backed up on orders.
.
So, just to be clear, apparently the 24-72 hour compounding window begins when Defy sends the order to Empower, which can take several days (4 days in my case). I took my last HCG shot yesterday, my last AI will be taken tonight, and I've got maybe a dose or two worth of test left. At this point, considering my order still hasn't been shipped, the best case scenario is that I get the meds sometime middle of next week, or 12-14 days after placing the order. That means I'll go at least a week without the AI and HCG and miss at least one test injection, and perhaps more.
.
I understand that I'm not going to drop dead or turn into a giant ball of estrogen in a week, but when treatment like this demands consistency and steady blood levels, this kind of delay is disheartening, especially to someone only a few months into treatment. I pleaded my situation with the rep I spoke with, but was told there was nothing she could do since the order already was with Empower and she couldn't do aynthing to speed it up.
.
I guess the lesson is to assume at least 2 weeks for the meds to arrive from the time you order, and plan accordingly. Prior orders with Defy have moved much more smoothly (my first test/HCG/AI order arrived only 4 days after placing the order), but based on this thread and others things are moving more slowly right now.
AND I just read the locked thread from last week, so it's clear I'm beating a very dead horse. Apologies for posting the above in light of that thread. I would have re-ordered even earlier, but despite running out of medications I never received an email or phone call from Defy reminding me to re-order. As noted above, for future orders, I'll plan to give at least a 2 week cushion.
Vince Carter
Banned
Two things I find that help me here is when I crack my 2 vial of Cyp, I place an order 7 days later. We all have different doses and volumes to our injections but I get about 35 shots on a 5mL vial so that gives ~3 weeks for the order to transit and be delivered.
Two, Hallandale uses UPS, Empower uses FedEx. Go to both of those websites and make yourself a free account. Anytime some one uses one of those carriers with your address the carrier will notify you and could help if there's a breakdown in the pharmacy sending the tracking back to Defy to send it on to you.
Two, Hallandale uses UPS, Empower uses FedEx. Go to both of those websites and make yourself a free account. Anytime some one uses one of those carriers with your address the carrier will notify you and could help if there's a breakdown in the pharmacy sending the tracking back to Defy to send it on to you.
Dr Justin Saya MD
Moderator
I've copied my response to the previous thread below and will also note that in response to this feedback we have identified a relative bottleneck in the process that has just occurred recently (with the quality control RX review step in the process). This is being addressed as we speak. I hope all agree that our medical care excels and we are constantly looking to improve every aspect (including basic customer service) of our care.
Copied post:
Constructive criticism is always welcome and valued. In fact, most of our medical training and residency experience is built on constructive criticism as an educational tool (although I know this isn't criticism of our medical care, but more the logistics).
Main point here is that the shopping cart is a new endeavor designed to (hopefully and ultimately) create more convenience for patients and offer an additional avenue for requesting necessary medical supplies, labs, etc. As with any new endeavor, there have been some bumps in the road and every bump presents an opportunity for improvement. We've continued to take patient input into consideration and, consequently, the cart option is an ever-evolving function.
As stated in the thread, the cart is an additional option but not intended to replace the most DIRECT reordering option, which is to call and speak directly to a staff member (in which case they will do a live cross-check of all of the details with the patient's chart and submit the order at the time of the call - which will then be signed by physician within 24hrs).
As also stated, unfortunately we have no control over the pharmacy lag time in dispensing the medications (once the order is sent to them) or the shipping times/carriers as those are arranged by the pharmacy. We are currently going to work on changing the shipping terms that the pharmacy uses, however, to lessen the chances of misinterpretations.
On our end, some of the lag that is being ironed out with the cart relates to the order coming through, then needing to be cross-checked by staff for accuracy, refill timing, etc...then needing to be submitted to physician for final review/signing, then being sent to pharmacy. Based on feedback and our own brainstorming there are several adjustments forthcoming to improve efficiency in some of these areas. Most RXs are submitted to the pharmacy (i.e. having gone through all of these steps) within 24-48hrs (rarely up to 72hrs) of being sent through the cart.
Again thanks to all for constructive feedback as we continually strive to improve our patients' experience.
Copied post:
Constructive criticism is always welcome and valued. In fact, most of our medical training and residency experience is built on constructive criticism as an educational tool (although I know this isn't criticism of our medical care, but more the logistics).
Main point here is that the shopping cart is a new endeavor designed to (hopefully and ultimately) create more convenience for patients and offer an additional avenue for requesting necessary medical supplies, labs, etc. As with any new endeavor, there have been some bumps in the road and every bump presents an opportunity for improvement. We've continued to take patient input into consideration and, consequently, the cart option is an ever-evolving function.
As stated in the thread, the cart is an additional option but not intended to replace the most DIRECT reordering option, which is to call and speak directly to a staff member (in which case they will do a live cross-check of all of the details with the patient's chart and submit the order at the time of the call - which will then be signed by physician within 24hrs).
As also stated, unfortunately we have no control over the pharmacy lag time in dispensing the medications (once the order is sent to them) or the shipping times/carriers as those are arranged by the pharmacy. We are currently going to work on changing the shipping terms that the pharmacy uses, however, to lessen the chances of misinterpretations.
On our end, some of the lag that is being ironed out with the cart relates to the order coming through, then needing to be cross-checked by staff for accuracy, refill timing, etc...then needing to be submitted to physician for final review/signing, then being sent to pharmacy. Based on feedback and our own brainstorming there are several adjustments forthcoming to improve efficiency in some of these areas. Most RXs are submitted to the pharmacy (i.e. having gone through all of these steps) within 24-48hrs (rarely up to 72hrs) of being sent through the cart.
Again thanks to all for constructive feedback as we continually strive to improve our patients' experience.
Vince Carter
Banned
That's more than 100% true and correct.
I agree entirely with that statement too. The medical care is excellent, and it says a lot that leadership at Defy reads these posts, responds, and makes changes to address patient concerns.
And apologies again for complaining about something that was already addressed at length in the other thread. I hadn’t read that one before posting.
Vince Carter
Banned
Coincidentally I placed an order yesterday and I'll track things and update this post and see how things go:
Order placed: 17 Jan @ 1:19pm
Email confirmation: instantaneous
Order placed: 17 Jan @ 1:19pm
Email confirmation: instantaneous
Good luck! Unfortunately, I called again this afternoon and mine still hasn’t shipped. The person I spoke with confirmed that at this point, since I chose ground shipping, I’ll receive the medication middle of next week at the earliest “if all goes well.”
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