What is in this article?:
Pain medication-related robberies put pharmacies on high alert, and prompt new security measures
Sidebar: On the Patrol
STAMFORD, Conn. — Purdue Pharma, maker of OxyContin, created RXpatrol.com in 2003 to help pharmacies protect themselves from crime and to assist law enforcement in investigating robberies.
The web-based program tracks patterns, trends and similarities, and sends the information to law enforcement groups to help apprehend assailants.
The site includes a database that law enforcers, pharmacists and loss prevention officials can access to see where robberies have taken place.
“It’s a tool for pharmacists to be aware of what’s going on in their neighborhood,” Luis Bauza, Purdue’s director of investigations, told SN.
RXpatrol.com has about 6,300 members, 55% of whom are in law enforcement.
Pharmacists can use the site to report a crime in their store. Once the incident is confirmed with police, it is uploaded into the database. Members can sign up for Twitter alerts so that they can be immediately notified of criminal activity in their areas. Purdue Pharma also provides in-store decals for pharmacies to use to notify the public that they are members of the RxPatrol.
“The more secure the pharmacy environment appears to the common criminal, the less likely that pharmacy will become victim of a crime,” Bauza said.
Read more: Healthy Signs for In-Store Clinics
Supermarket-based pharmacies need to be just as vigilant as standalone ones, Bauza said.
Bauza encourages supermarkets to remove fliers and posters from store windows. Such materials can obscure the passers-by view into the store, thereby making it more susceptible to crime. He also recommends that pharmacy personnel take notice of anyone standing near the pharmacy.
“Just because a guy appears to be looking at food doesn’t mean he is not staking out the pharmacy,” he said.
