First Retail Group's Lorraine Nicholson talks about Wellington City Council's Eyes On Programme as it supports the pharmacy sector in New Zealand's Capital City

1. PharmacyToday.co.nz June 2017 | 47
GEORGIA MERTON
Glen Eden pharmacist Sue Ross
was so fed up with shoplifters she
got together with fellow retailers
and tackled the issue head on.
“I personally felt really threat-
ened by the lowlifes who used to
steal from here and get away with
it,” says Mrs Ross.
She says elderly customers were
also hesitant to shop in the phar-
macy as they felt threatened.
It was a growing problem for
her and her fellow retailers in
the Auckland suburb, and having
decided enough was enough, they
set up a crime prevention commit-
tee, which had support from the
local council.
“We now have weekly meetings
focusing on safety and prevention,”
she says of the initiative, which she
says has seen her losses go from
$200 to $10 monthly.
Retail theft accounts for over
$1 billion of losses for New
Zealand retailers per year accord-
ing to First Retail, and pharmacists
have been reporting incidents of
shoplifting are becoming more
regular.
In Glen Eden, CCTV cam-
eras now have the village covered
and a panic button connected to
the police has been installed in
the pharmacy. Shop owners now
communicate with each other via
email, raising the alarm if they’ve
seen someone pinch something or
if someone seems dodgy.
“Our staff meetings now focus
on things we need to do, like
always having two staff on the
floor. We have a bell in the shop
and the dispensary, so if someone
needs a hand the other will come
out and observe,” she explains.
“You just stand there and stare
at them. It’s uncomfortable and
horrible, but it seems to work,”
says Mrs Ross, who has owned
the pharmacy for 15 years and is
among the volunteer shop own-
ers that help keep the programme
­running.
She has combined her own
strategies with the committee’s,
putting height markers on the door
for identifying suspects and dis-
playing a sign from the Pharmacy
Guild, which states staff can ask to
search someone’s bag if they sus-
pect them of theft.
According to the New Zealand
Police, the best deterrent against
shop theft is well-trained staff. If
a staff member suspects a thief is
in the store, they should approach
them politely and multiple times,
offering assistance as long as they
feel safe.
The crime prevention guide-
lines advise staff to follow their
instincts and not to stereotype;
anyone can steal and anything can
be stolen.
If staff suspect a theft has been
made, they should approach the
person and tell them what they
have seen. If they are cooperative,
staff should ask them to return the
items, but according to the guide-
lines, it is better to let them go
than risk being assaulted.
For Mrs Ross, staff safety is the
number one priority, and she says
never to give chase.
Mrs Ross says that since the
changes, the shoplifting that was
occurring daily has gone down to
about once a month. The real mark
of success she says has been the
return of Clear Eyes to the shop
floor from behind the counter,
where it had been moved due to its
popularity with shoplifters.
The Glen Eden community isn’t
the only one to band together and
put their foot down against thieves.
Thirty-two Wellington pharma-
cies are a part of an initiative called
Eyes On, the brainchild of First
Retail and the capital’s council and
police force.
Eyes On, which began two-
and-a-half years ago and now
includes over 600 retailers, has
reduced CBD retail-related crime
by 23%, according to First Retail
client services manager Lorraine
Nicholson.
The initiative has retailers col-
laborating through email to send
each other alerts with pictures or
descriptions of shoplifters work-
ing in the area, and offers crime-
prevention training sessions and
ongoing support.
“Pharmacies are a really core
part of the community,” says Ms
Nicholson. “It was really heart-
warming to see them all there at
the first training.”
For Tawa pharmacist and Eyes
On member Ant Simon, the net-
work finally brought some relief
from a group of repeat offenders
that were known to his staff.
“They used to come in as a
team and clear out large amounts
of stock, gift sets and things like
that,” says Mr Simon, whose
CCTV footage of shoplifters was
passed to the police through Eyes
On.
The police were then able to
track and prosecute the offending
shoplifters. “We were just tired of
them coming in, asking questions
about the stock they’d stolen last
time,” says Mr Simon.
Before that, he says, thefts of
$300 or less wouldn’t really get
looked at by the police.
The programme doesn’t stop at
curbing financial losses. The free
training sessions are a crucial part,
according to Ms Nicholson. They
offer lessons in “verbal judo”, or
the “gentle art of persuasion”, and
how to have strategies in place for
confrontations.
“We wanted to make sure we
covered all roles in pharmacy,”
she says, of the sessions, which
focus on helping staff diffuse tricky
situations and keep up with the
constantly changing shoplifting
“trends”.
While there are a range of tac-
tics used by shoplifters, there are
some common ones that it can pay
to recognise, according to Crime.
co.nz.
The website says professional
RETAIL THERAPY
FROM THE SHOP FLOOR : The latest news and views in retail space
Get thrifty
against theft
What you can do:
■■ Display the Pharmacy Guild sign
in multiple places that states that
staff can ask to search someone’s
bag if they suspect them of theft
■■ Run your own test and see how easy
it would be to steal from your store.
■■ Sightlines: Keep clear
sightlines to low displays
and have mirrors in store
■■ Plans in place that all staff can agree
on and feel safe with. For example,
if you suspect someone, make sure
they know they are being observed;
agree among staff not to give chase.
■■ Simple rules like acknowledging
every person that comes into
the store and always having
two people on the shop floor.
■■ Height markers on the doors
to help identify people
through CCTV footage.
■■ If there are certain items that
keep getting stolen, keep
them behind the counter.
■■ Band together with your local group
of retailers and alert each other
to dodgy or offending patrons.
■■ Be aware of common shoplifting
behaviour such as loud distractions
and hiding things in baggy clothing.
Lorraine Nicholson Ant SImon
Continued on page 49
JUNE17_PT_RETAIL.indd 47 24/05/17 7:45 PM

2. SORE THROATS : SPOTLIGHT
PharmacyToday.co.nz June 2017 | 49
GEORGIA MERTON
We’re all familiar with that painful
swallow that heralds a sore throat,
whether it be from the beginnings
of a cold, a serious infection or just
overdoing it on a night out.
The most common cause for
throat pain, according to laryn-
gologist Jacqui Allen, is acute lar-
yngitis, which is inflammation of
the voice box.
This may be caused by a bac-
terial, viral or sometimes fungal
infection, or from overuse or
irritation. According to Dr Allen,
low-level laryngitis can be easily
treated over the counter, but phar-
macists need to be aware of the
signs of an acute infection.
“Normally, it’s a bacterial thing
so there are high fevers, muscle and
joint aches and pain, nausea and
sometimes swollen glands,” says
Dr Allen, who established the first
Centre for Voice and Swallowing in
Auckland.
A common and potentially
serious bacterial infection is strep
throat, which Dr Allen emphasises
is important to keep an eye out for.
Caused by Streptococcus ­bacteria,
strep throat is a contagious bac-
terial infection, which, if left
untreated can cause rheumatic
fever, kidney problems and other
complications.
Pharmacist Carol Han says she
always asks her patients whether
anyone around them has had a sore
throat and what their living situa-
tion is like, as strep throat thrives
in close-quarter living conditions.
“Maori and Pacific people are
more prone, so if they have a sore
throat with significant pain, we
send them to the doctor to get
a swab,” says Miss Han, a newly
graduated pharmacist at Milford
Unichem.
“We always ask how bad the
pain is. If they can’t talk or swal-
low, they probably need a swab just
in case,” she says.
According to the Ministry
of Health guidelines, the patient
should see a doctor if they have
had a sore throat for more than a
few days, are having trouble swal-
lowing, have a high fever, enlarged
tonsils, swollen neck or ear or joint
pain.
For a sore throat that presents
as part of the “classic” cold, Miss
Han says to treat symptomatically,
until the virus has run its course.
She advises antibacterial loz-
enges, gargles or sprays, which are
anti-inflammatory and can contain
an analgesic, depending what the
customer wants.
Her co-worker and pharmacy
assistant at Milford Unichem,
Michelle Nawisielski, says she
always recommends a gargle that is
both antiviral and antibacterial.
For a natural solution for less
severe cases, or for those who
are opposed to antibiotics, Ms
Nawisielski says colloidal silver
solution is great, as it is antibacte-
rial, antiviral and antimicrobial.
According to Miss Han, ear
pain can be a classic symptom of
the cold or flu, but she always asks
about the severity as intense pain
can be indicative of a more serious
infection.
A less common source of infec-
tion for the throat is Candida, a
fungal infection. According to Dr
Allen, this can occur after a course
of antibiotics, especially after sur-
gery, or for those on long-term
medication such as asthma steroids.
Dr Allen says she has also seen
Candida infection in diabetics and
immunosuppressed patients, but
it is easily treatable by Fungalin
lozenges or Nilstat.
Aside from infection,
the vocal cords are sensitive
to irritation from a multi-
tude of factors, according
to Dr Allen. She says
overuse is common, and
can be made worse by
air-conditioning or
snoring, which further
dries out the throat.
“Lubrication is vital
for the vocal cords and
throat at all times,” says
Dr Allen, and says there are over-
the-counter products available to
soothe. She says a persistent cough
or reflux can also be to blame for
pain.
Ms Nawisielski says to soothe
a sore throat, she can’t go past
honey, which has known antisep-
tic properties. “Fresh lemon and
honey drinks, if the person isn’t
diabetic, or honey lozenges,” she
says.
As for tonsillitis, Dr Allen
explains, it’s the aggravation of the
tonsils rather than the voice box,
and she says patients will often
only get a mild voice change those
with laryngitis – will often come
in rasping or with no voice at all.
She says a trip to the doctor is
advisable if you suspect tonsillitis,
as multiple severe cases will prob-
ably lead to a tonsillectomy. “Four
or more a year or three consecu-
tive years with two to three infec-
tions, then they’ll generally come
out,” she says.
Whereas most of us think of
bowls of icecream when it comes
to tonsillectomy recovery, Dr
Allen says that normal food should
be encouraged from day one, as it
reduces swelling.
“Plenty of fluid, regular pain
relief and sometimes overlap-
ping analgesia for the first seven
to 10 days, so paracetamol and an
NSAID,” she says. She says ice-
blocks and topical analgesic sprays
can help, too.
According to Dr Allen, throat
cancer is quite rare, with 300 new
cases per year in New Zealand,
and is usually seen in patients
who smoke or have a high alcohol
intake.
She says warning signs include a
persistent voice change or deterio-
ration, combined with weight loss,
ear ache, difficulty swallowing, a
neck lump or mass or coughing up
blood.
“Anyone with these symp-
toms should see an ENT specialist
urgently, and they can do an endo-
scopic exam,” says Dr Allen.
She says smokers, in general,
shouldn’t suffer from a sore throat,
and if they do have pain, they
should see a specialist.
As for keeping a sore throat at
bay over winter, Dr Allen advises
good sleep, good hydration, the flu
shot and Vitamin C.
“And cough into your elbow!”GM
Soothing the pain
of sore throats
1:22 PM
We always ask how
bad the pain is. If they
can’t talk or swallow,
they probably need a
swab just in case
REFER TO THE GP
IF THE PATIENT
HAS ANY OF THE
­FOLLOWING
■■ a sore throat that lasts
more than a few days
■■ difficulty swallowing
■■ your tonsils are enlarged
or coated
■■ a high temperature
(above 39°C)
■■ swelling in your neck
■■ earache or joint pain.
Source Ministry of Health
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PharmacyToday
shoplifters will often shop in pairs,
using one as a decoy to distract
staff. The first thing they will do is
move towards an unsupervised area
of the store.
Loose-fitting clothing, nerv-
ous behaviour and a lot of product
handling may all be signs of a shop-
lifter.
“There’s the social aspect too,
causing a nuisance, making staff
feel unsafe,” says Ms Nicholson.
Feedback from pharmacies has led
First Retail and the police to devel-
op a pharmacy-specific staff train-
ing course that starts in June.
It’s a matter of safety first for
Mr Simon, too, who owns two
pharmacies across the road from
each other. The first things he
tells his staff is to let him know if
there’s someone suspicious and to
wait for him to arrive.
He went to Eyes On training last
year with two of his staff, and says
one of the most memorable things
they learnt was to acknowledge
people’s presence in the store, like
the tactic employed by Mrs Ross.
“You want to acknowledge
them as soon as they walk in the
store. It’s like at Bunnings where
the security guards say hello to
you, it lets them know they’ve been
seen,” Mr Simon says.
For Ms Nicholson, it’s been
inspiring to see the true power
of information between retailers
and in the staff training sessions.
“It’s really about building the com-
munity, and seeing all the retailers
band together.”
She says the Eyes On
programme has been so success-
ful that it’s attracting attention
from police all over the country,
and hopefully it can inspire the
same kind of collaboration in other
regions.
Keep an eye on shoplifters
From page 47
JUNE17_PT_RETAIL.indd 49 24/05/17 7:45 PM