# Where can I buy doctor's office pens? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 16, 2007, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483 "2007-02-16T15:11:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![zeno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zeno/32/15040_2.png) [@zeno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zeno)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/1 "2007-02-16T15:11:42Z")
The one with medicine advertisements? The always write so well. I’ve tried buying nice pens in the store, but they still aren’t as good as the ones you find in doctor’s offices. Is there a place to buy them? I don’t even know who makes them. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/2 "2007-02-16T15:13:18Z")
[Go wild.](http://www.pens.com/pens/?DCMP=KNC-Google&HBX_PK=national+pen+company&HBX_OU=50) ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/3 "2007-02-16T15:13:58Z")
Look for any company that makes things like pens, watches, paper and other corporate goodies that can be bought in bulk with a company named screened onto it. These are the goodies that sales and account reps throw at their clients, along with drug samples. The backs of business mags, ariplane/airline mags, etc usually have advertisements for such companies. ---
**Author:** ![Spiral\_Stairs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/50afbb/32.png) [@Spiral\_Stairs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiral_Stairs)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/4 "2007-02-16T15:14:50Z")
[QUOTE=zeno] The one with medicine advertisements? The always write so well. I’ve tried buying nice pens in the store, but they still aren’t as good as the ones you find in doctor’s offices. Is there a place to buy them? I don’t even know who makes them. [/QUOTE] They are given to doctors by pharmaceutical company representatives, in an effort to keep the advertised drugs at the front of the doctors’ minds. (“Say, Mr. Patient, I was just thinking of the perfect drug for you…”) I can’t imagine they are for sale anywhere in the promotional format provided to doctors, but perhaps you could wrangle some by contacting the pharm cos. Alternatively, maybe you could get someone at the pharm cos. to tell you the source for their pens. Most likely, though, they would tell you to pound sand. ---
**Author:** ![zeno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zeno/32/15040_2.png) [@zeno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zeno)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/5 "2007-02-16T15:15:27Z")
Fast. Thanks guys. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/6 "2007-02-16T15:16:30Z")
You could always ask your doctor where to get them ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/7 "2007-02-16T15:16:51Z")
search for _promotional pens_ in Google. e.g., [http://www.customink.com/promo/promotional-pens.htm](http://www.customink.com/promo/promotional-pens.htm) ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/8 "2007-02-16T15:21:49Z")
You’ll get a better deal from National, and they keep sending you samples long after you’ve placed an order. i get our Debate pens from them, and in the last few years they have sent me free: over 2 dozen other pens, 4 magnetic calendars, 3 very nice calculators, 2 manicure sets, 1 eyeglass repair kit, and a ton of other stuff. Once you make a minimum order from a place like this, they’ll keep you in pens for _years_. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/9 "2007-02-16T15:40:45Z")
Huh. Pens envy. ---
**Author:** ![Spiral\_Stairs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/50afbb/32.png) [@Spiral\_Stairs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiral_Stairs)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/10 "2007-02-16T15:45:54Z")
Oh, another thing. My father-in-law is a doctor, and he has oodles of these pens sitting around, all over the house. I routinely take one. (I like the ones with the rubberized shafts.) If you know a doctor – as a friend or a service provider – he or she probably also has oodles and wouldn’t mind giving you some. ---
**Author:** ![Spiral\_Stairs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/50afbb/32.png) [@Spiral\_Stairs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiral_Stairs)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/11 "2007-02-16T15:47:19Z")
God, I can’t stop. When in doubt, [consult eBay](http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&satitle=pharmaceutical+pen). ---
**Author:** ![zeno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zeno/32/15040_2.png) [@zeno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zeno)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/12 "2007-02-16T15:57:31Z")
[QUOTE=Spiral Stairs] God, I can’t stop. When in doubt, [consult eBay](http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&satitle=pharmaceutical+pen). [/QUOTE] the Best. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/13 "2007-02-16T18:47:09Z")
[QUOTE=Bryan Ekers] Huh. Pens envy. [/QUOTE] Who has the biggest Bic? ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/14 "2007-02-16T19:20:32Z")
Take 'em Those nurses have more pens then you can imagine. I cater lunches for drug reps almost everyday of the week and they come in with boxes of stuff like that. My MIL is a nurse, at her work they have a closet stuffed top to bottom with pads of paper, and pens from drug reps. So next time your at the doctor, just ask if you can get a couple of them. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/15 "2007-02-16T20:44:24Z")
I used to sell a lot of drug rep pens on eBay – haven’t taken the time to post any lately. How many are you looking for? I generally ask for $1 each for up to a dozen (includes postage) or 75 cents each plus actual postage for larger quantities. Remember, though: these will all say things like Prozac and Zoloft and Stratera, etc. Don’t know how image sensitive you are. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/16 "2007-02-16T21:16:00Z")
I have a good relationship with the nurses in my PCPs office. I get lots of stuff from their office when I’m in for a visit; pens, post-its, paper clips, etc. They have _so much_ of this crap floating around, they’re generally _happy_ to find someone to take some of it off their hands. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/17 "2007-02-16T21:55:44Z")
I especially like the ones shaped like syringes. [www.thepenguy.com/promotional/souvenir\_syringe.htm](http://www.thepenguy.com/promotional/souvenir_syringe.htm) ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/18 "2007-02-16T22:26:25Z")
[QUOTE=Bridget Burke] I especially like the ones shaped like syringes. [www.thepenguy.com/promotional/souvenir\_syringe.htm](http://www.thepenguy.com/promotional/souvenir_syringe.htm) [/QUOTE] My favorite is for Diastat (Diazepam Rectal Gel), yes, that’s right…it’s butt valium. The kicker is it’s got a picture of a fire extinguisher on it. Who wants to see a picture of a fire extingusher associated with injecting a fluid up their butt. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2007, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/19 "2007-02-16T22:27:37Z")
[QUOTE=Bridget Burke] I especially like the ones shaped like syringes. [www.thepenguy.com/promotional/souvenir\_syringe.htm](http://www.thepenguy.com/promotional/souvenir_syringe.htm) [/QUOTE] Would you believe those are banned at my kid’s school? They “glamorize drug use”, apparently. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![ladyfoxfyre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ad7895/32.png) [@ladyfoxfyre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ladyfoxfyre)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2007, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483/20 "2007-02-17T02:19:52Z")
I recently brought in to work a freezer Ziploc-sized bag full of drug pens that I had collected over my time in pharmacy. We may get thousands of them, but pens are always somehow a scarcity inside the pharmacy. I have a ton of them at home, because we always put them into our pockets and then just forget and leave them on the nightstand. This results in drawers and drawers full of them. My favorite had to be the Levitra pen that folded in half into itself; push the button, and the pen “unfolds” into an “erect” position. I didn’t have that one for long ☹ I’ll second the suggestion to ask your doctor’s office for them. You have to be careful which pens write the best though: Nasonex, Wellbutrin, and Avodart are my favorites. They have a thin point black gel ink that is really really awesome. There are several run-of-the-mill crappy ballpoint pens. When I see the drug reps come into work whose pens I really enjoy, I corner them, and take all their swag. -foxy [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-can-i-buy-doctors-office-pens/392483.md?page=2)