You're right, though. You wrote once about the dichotomy between "trade" and "profession" and I've noticed it as well. The older people seem to think pharmacy is more of an apprenticeship thing where you might go to school for a year or two and that's it, whereas the younger people seem to know that there's a buttload of school and hard work involved in being a pharmacist.

Given that I do consulting mostly for baby-boomers, I like to think that I'm doing my little bit to change some opinions. Many seem amazed that they can ask the questions they really want to ask, and get real answers without being rushed out. I guess that's the difference between essentially being salaried and being paid for an office visit where more people = more money.

There is a caste system in the head of each customer/patient. They complain to us, and not to the doctor, because we are not doctors and we are reminiscent of soda jerks to them, so they feel they can use us as whipping boys. They would never use the beknighted physician as such; it would be like cat-o'-nine-tailing a priest.