All in the chemistry P
harmacies, unlike other shops, rarely have personalised or made-up names
in France. However, I have seen one called ‘Pharmavie’ (ma vie: my life), a few called ‘Espace santé’ (health area), and perhaps predictably a good number called ‘La croix verte’ (the pharmacy symbol). The word ‘parapharmacie’, which is sometimes part of a chemist’s name, is the French word for alternative medicines including health and hygiene products. The national symbol for the
Conseil National de l’Ordre des Pharmaciens is a big neon green cross, which nearly always hangs at a right angle to the shopfront. When the shop is open, it fl ashes non-stop in bright green, showing the ‘serpent and chalice’ symbol, a reminder of the origins of medical practice in the ancient world. This is in rotation with various information such as the date or the air temperature. When the pharmacy is closed, the cross is sometimes switched
off . These big green crosses can be an easy way for those who are not local to quickly spot chemist shops. Very few shops stay open
at lunchtime in the Hexagone, but I have seen two good-sized pharmacies in two of the small towns near where we live stay open all day. Notices about nearest
‘pharmacies de garde’ are usually displayed on these shop windows, for emergencies when the shop is closed (emergency phone numbers for health issues include 18 and 15). As with some bakeries, it is
not unusual to fi nd pharmacies with their own free small parking areas (parking réservé à la pharmacie or parking gratuit).
MEDECINE MONOPOLY It is not possible to buy anything other than plasters and mouthwash solution in other shops in France, including supermarkets of all sizes. Anything else for health problems, small and not so small – even simple painkillers
Monique Jackman takes a closer look at pharmacies – the only place you can fi nd medicine for sale in her native France
or cleansing eye drops – can only be bought in pharmacies. You have to ask a pharmacist for these things as they are kept out of customers’ reach, either behind the counter or with the prescription medicines in a back room. A few years back, an
announcement was made in the press saying that it would be possible in the near future to fi nd up to 200 basic medicines such as paracetamol in supermarkets, but this plan hasn’t materialised where I live so far. I once asked a pharmacist
for the strongest type of sore throat sweets available without a prescription, and she gave me a very medical-looking box of 12 tablets from behind the counter. It surprised me that these sweets out of customers’ reach – which looked like large paracetamol tablets, had the same kind of texture as Refreshers sweets, and which I had to suck until they vanished – were nowhere near as eff ective as British Tunes
“It is not possible to buy anything other than plasters and mouthwash solution in other shops”
sweets, for example. There are, however, some makes of sweets that relieve sore throats available in many food shops, usually alongside the other sweets and chocolates. That day I was hoping for something stronger, but I wasn’t in luck.
FREE ADVICE I only once came across a pharmacist who did not have a faultless approach to customers. I have known a chemist to ring my doctor there and then to raise a query about something on my prescription. It wasn’t a very brief question and answer; I couldn’t believe my ears. The staff in chemist’s shops
Staff in chemist shops are happy to answer questions about your prescription
76 FRENCH PROPERTY NEWS: March/April 2024
are also more than happy to answer questions you have about your prescriptions, as well as about other health problems, and they never
© SHUTTERSTOCK
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