The J & J Pharmacy Podcast

Episode 107: Pharmasave Miniseries - Mehul Patel (Clive, Alberta)

Please email your resume and cover letters to: Pharmasaveclive@gmail.com 
 
To help round out our Pharmasave Miniseries, we had the fantastic opportunity to interview Mehul Patel, the owner of the Clive location.
 
It’s almost a recurring theme at this point, but Mehul also had an interesting career journey, actually working as a scientist before deciding to switch to pharmacy as he was eager to seek connection with patients. From there, he worked in the corporate world for almost 10 years before partnering with one of his best buddies to open 2 pharmacies, something that he wishes that he would have done earlier.
 
A fun fact about Mehul is that despite being a vegetarian and having never tasted liquor in his life, he actually owns a Steakhouse restaurant!
 
This was a fantastic last episode and Mehul was able to share some amazing wisdom about why rural pharmacy is so awesome and the reasons why you should consider doing it yourself.
 
Disclaimer: These episodes are sponsored by Pharmasave. However, the content and opinions expressed by the owners are explicitly their own and were not influenced in any way by Pharmasave.

Episode 106: Pharmasave Miniseries - Merv and Lauri-Ell (Jasper, Alberta)

Please email your resume and cover letters to: jasperpharmasave317@gmail.com 
 
Joining us on the next installment of the Pharmasave Miniseries is another tandem, Merv and Lauri-Ell, owners of the Pharmasave location in Jasper.
 
For 28 years and counting, Merv has been a community pharmacist and business owner, and not one year has his love for it waned. Starting off strong following graduation from pharmacy school, Merv actually directly partnered with a long-standing community pharmacy in Hinton. It wasn’t until 16 years later did he open his Jasper location under the Pharmasave banner. Although the space was small and old school, the locals loved it and he was still able to provide exceptional pharmacy services.
 
Of course, Merv would not have been able to accomplish this without his partner Lauri-Ell. Lauri-Ell plays an integral role in making sure the day-to-day operations of the pharmacy keep moving forward smoothly, and also heads HR, so be sure to make a good impression if you’re interested in working at this location!
 
Speaking of location, due to COVID and the aforementioned small space, both Merv and Lauri-Ell actually made the decision recently to expand from the original location, but still bringing the best, friendly, “how can we help” customer service, for which they’ve actually been awarded a few times now from the Chamber of Commerce.
 
This was undoubtedly a fantastic episode, and hey, you never know, maybe you’ll find yourself working at this pharmacy and also joining Merv in his Heli Skiing that he’s been doing for 10 years now!
 
Disclaimer: These episodes are sponsored by Pharmasave. However, the content and opinions expressed by the owners are explicitly their own and were not influenced in any way by Pharmasave.

Episode 105: Pharmasave Miniseries - Heather Brown (Hanna, Alberta)

Please email your resume and cover letters to: pharmasave.3035.harvestsky@gmail.com 
 
Continuing with our Pharmasave Miniseries, we next interview Heather Brown, another exceptional pharmacist and owner of the Hanna Pharmasave location.
 
Graduating with her Bachelor of Pharmacy in 1988, Heather had actually worked right out of the gates at the same pharmacy for 33 years! Then, she finally decided to open her own store, and as she puts in her own words - not because I really wanted to, but because there was a need for it in our community. Since then, her emphasis for her pharmacy location has always been towards providing learning opportunities for students and collaborating with other healthcare professionals, thus establishing a sense of belonging and togetherness when working to help care for the community. A fun fact about Heather is that not only does she sell drugs (legally), but she also sings in a band and encourages entrepreneurial spirit in the community by also carrying homemade jams and pickles in her pharmacy.
 
As you can tell, Heather is a fantastic individual and hopefully her wise words will motivate you to consider working in rural pharmacy as she is eager to find the right pharmacist who is willing to explore their inner entrepreneur.
 
Disclaimer: These episodes are sponsored by Pharmasave. However, the content and opinions expressed by the owners are explicitly their own and were not influenced in any way by Pharmasave.

Episode 104: Pharmasave Miniseries - James Kitagawa (Brooks, Alberta)

Please email your resume and cover letters to: jkitagawa345@gmail.com 
 
In the next installment of the Pharmasave Miniseries, Jared and I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing Jim Kitagawa, the owner of the Brooks Pharmasave Location.
 
With 40 years of practice under his belt, having graduated with a Bachelor of Pharmacy in 1983, Jim is no stranger to professional and career achievements, having received his PCCA compounding certification, Metagenics Lifestyle Coach certification, injection certification, and of course his APA certification. During the course of this episode, we learned a lot from Jim, particularly his approach to healthcare “Prevention Therapy”, as opposed to the conventional Western medicine perspective. Although probably not part of his lifestyle recommendations, or perhaps it is, Jim spends his free time in the lifelong pursuit of being a Karaoke King.
 
Disclaimer: These episodes are sponsored by Pharmasave. However, the content and opinions expressed by the owners are explicitly their own and were not influenced in any way by Pharmasave.

Episode 103: Pharmasave Miniseries - Jessica Hadfield (Valleyview, Alberta)

Please email your resume and cover letters to: jhadfield@EudaimoniaRx.ca 
 
Keeping it rolling with our Pharmasave Miniseries, we next interview Jessica Hadfield, who is the proud owner of Pharmasave locations, with an emphasis on plural!
 
As an APA certified pharmacist with additional training in specialty compounding, Jessica actually owns four pharmacies in Northern Alberta, all with potential job opportunities, so pay special attention to this episode! As well, we explore more of Jessica’s interest in compounding hormone replacement therapy products, which are gaining particular traction in rural areas. When she’s not busy managing all these pharmacies, Jessica loves hiking up mountains, which are never in short supply in the province of Alberta.
 
Disclaimer: These episodes are sponsored by Pharmasave. However, the content and opinions expressed by the owners are explicitly their own and were not influenced in any way by Pharmasave.

Episode 102: Pharmasave Miniseries - Georgina & Eric Gaudet (Bashaw, Alberta)

Please email your resume and cover letters to: georgina@pharmasavebashaw.com 
 
Helping us kick-off our first Pharmasave owner’s interviews are Georgina and Eric Gaudet, who are the lovely owners of the Bashaw location.
 
Georgina’s journey to where she is now is certainly an interesting one, as she completed a Bachelor’s of Arts at the University of Alberta. From there, she was a former Communications Advisor for AHS Pharmacy Services, before finally landing in Bashaw and owning a pharmacy with Eric.
 
Not to be outdone by Georgina, Eric has also pursued a unique career path, wherein he first completed his Bachelor’s in Commerce with Honours before making the decision to pivot and make a pharmacist of himself at the University of Alberta. Since then, his passion for the profession has manifested itself with getting his APA, being a preceptor, and of course owning his own pharmacy.
 
Together, this one-two punch are also the proud parents of three little girls, with apparently their middlest daughter announcing that she wants to be a ballerina pharmacist!
 
Tune into this fantastic episode and we hope any pharmacists out there listening will consider applying to this location.
 
Disclaimer: These episodes are sponsored by Pharmasave. However, the content and opinions expressed by the owners are explicitly their own and were not influenced in any way by Pharmasave.

Episode 101: Pharmasave Miniseries - Dwain Nottebrock and Steve Wood

Hello everyone, welcome to our Pharmasave sponsored Miniseries! When Pharmasave first approached us to hopefully put together some episodes highlighting some of their amazing independently owned rural pharmacies who were interested in hiring new pharmacists, we would have never imagined the fun and innovative practices we would encounter, not to mention the amazing owners behind them. So please, tune in to find out more about these locations and you never know, you just might find your future fulfilling pharmacy career!
 
Before getting into our interviews with the owners, we wanted to start things off with a conversation with a couple of Pharmasave representatives, Dwain Nottebrock, who is the Regional Pharmacy Manager of Pharmacy West, and Steve Wood, who is the Region Director of Retail and Business Development.
 
Dwain first began his journey in pharmacy when he received his degree in 2002 after already having a Bachelors of Psychology with Honours in 1995. Since then, he has been a former Pharmacy Manager with London Drugs and Costco, and also a former Compliance Officer with the College of Pharmacists of BC. It was after all that, that he finally moved onto his current position as Regional Pharmacy Manager with Pharmasave West. A fun fact about Dwain is that he moved from Vancouver Island to Calgary around 3 and a half years ago, and surprisingly, still loves it? As well, he has two French Bulldogs named Edison and Newton, as well as a Poodle/Terrier cross named Tilly, with all three I’m sure being very cute.
 
With an equally fascinating pharmacy journey, Steve actually joined a large retail organization right out of high school in their management development program. This experience granted him the opportunity to build his career with a mix of classroom and on the job learning, eventually leading to many certifications and awards! It was after 20 years that he finally felt like it was the right time to move on and joined Pharmasave in 2010. Using all the skills he had developed and refined over the years, his passion has now evolved into helping pharmacists realize their dreams of owning a Pharmasave pharmacy. Working with a team of professionals to support Pharmasave members, Steve is involved with the entire process, including store planning, operational support, merchandising, and much more! He now strongly believes that his career achievements and professional satisfaction goes hand-in-hand with every successful Pharmasave store that opens. A fun fact about Steve is that he is currently renovating his home…all by himself, which has certainly been a tough but enjoyable challenge where he is forced to learn a completely different set of skills. He revels in taking his time and seeing the fruits of his literal labour!
 
Now you know a little more about Dwain and Steve, strap-in and tune into our scintillating conversation with them about what Pharmasave stands for, what it means to be an “Independent” pharmacy, and then committing the last half of the episode to discussing what it takes to own your own pharmacy and how Pharmasave can help support you in that process.
 
Disclaimer: These episodes are sponsored by Pharmasave. However, the content and opinions expressed by the owners are explicitly their own and were not influenced in any way by Pharmasave.

Taking a Moment to Look Back...

When we first created this podcast, we would have never imagined making it to our 100th episode! From recording audio with our phones to eventually interviewing amazing guests in the pharmacy world, we have certainly grown in the past three years. However, none of this would have been possible without the support of our friends and family, the faculty, various pharmacy organizations, and of course you guys, our loyal audience. As such, take a listen as we reminisce on the past 99 episodes and discuss what is coming up on the horizon!

100th Episode Special: Interview with Dr. May Choi

Lucky number 100! To help celebrate our special milestone of a hundred episodes, we had the amazing privilege of interviewing Dr. May Choi, a Rheumatologist and prominent researcher working in Calgary, Alberta.
 
Dr. Choi received her MD at the University of Alberta before completing an Internal Medicine residency at the U of C. From there, she completed her Rheumatology Fellowship at the University of Calgary. Still not satisfied, she also has an additional Lupus Fellowship from the Brigham and Women’s Hospital as well as an MPH from the T.H. Chan School of Public Health at Harvard.
 
On top of being a practicing clinician, Dr. Choi also holds a position of Assistant Professor at the University of Calgary Cumming School of Medicine. Furthermore, she runs her own research lab, studying novel biomarkers for autoimmune diseases. Her passion for research shows through her nearly 7.3 million dollars in grant funding, 64 published journal papers and 4 book chapters. Finally, I’m not sure how she finds the time to do this, but when she’s not actively practicing or conducting research, she also fits in a monthly education program in conjunction with pharmacy and other disciplines.
 
A fun fact about Dr. Choi is that she’s actually my older sister, and it was incredibly fun and interesting to hear her talk about her practice and also gain insight into how we as pharmacists can help improve interdisciplinary collaboration with our medicine colleagues.

Episode 99: Case Review - Treating ADHD in Incarcerated Populations Using Non-Stimulants

In this episode Jared reviews a case study from his time at the Calgary remand center. In it he discusses what ADHD is and some novel ways to approach the treatment of ADHD. Sit back and enjoy this penultimate episode before our 100th which will be released 3 years to the date of our first episode!