farmacia

When an Ecuadorian needs medicine, whether it be the cure to the common cold, pills to prevent malaria, or to get rid of a parasite they picked up from eating something from one of the numerous street vendors sprinkled throughout the country, before they go to the doctor, they go to the farmacia in search of a remedy. While there are numerous options, the one most prevalent in Quito is Fybeca. Once inside the CVS style store, you pass the isles of chifles and soda and office supplies to the back where a man or woman in a white coat greets you and asks what your symptoms are. In certain aspects this service is nice, such as last year when I went to the jungle, instead of paying for a doctors visit and the high price of malaria prevention pills, I just went to the local farmacia to pick up pills for about 25 cents a piece, not bad. However, when you know what you want, and the option is not available it can become incredibly frustrating trying to navigate the foreign system (from the perspective of a person born in the US)

The other day I was feeling a cold coming on, and wanted the equivalent of dayquil, I described all of the normal symptoms: congested, a little achy, but most noticeably dizzy (that feeling you get usually after taking cold medicine). I was told that they were not allowed to prescribe cold medicine, for fear of discouraging people with swine flu from going to the hospital, but they could give me a pill to relieve some of the symptoms. With no further explanation, they wrote me a prescription for 4 red pills and i went to the checkout to pay and pick up my medicine at the front of the store. As I had no idea what I had just purchased, I immediately googled the drug upon returning to my office before consuming the mystery pill. I learned that it is similar to aspirin and used to cure fevers and pain, neither of which I was experiencing, so instead I relied on the vitamin C pills I had purchased at the register to cure my ailments. It remains a mystery to me what education the pharmacists have here, and what criteria they use for assessing which medicine to prescribe when. I still have the 4 red pills sitting in my room and am now prepared for if I do experience more severe cold symptoms, but O how I miss dayquil.