Inverary Pharmasave brings new services on board

Jeff Green | Jan 08, 2020

Next month, Leonard Chan and the team at Inverary Pharmasave will be celebrating their second anniversary. It has been an eventful two years for Leonard, who has started a family during that time and seen his business progress steadily.

“The business has grown faster than projected, which is good,” said Leonard, in an interview just before Christmas, “and we are doing some innovative things as the community around us continues to grown and the role of pharmacists in the medical system develops.”

One of those innovations is in the relatively new field of DNA profiling. The Pharmasave is working with a company called MyDna, a genetic interpretation company, to help patients make more informed decisions about which medications may work best.

“The thing about DNA is that it does not change, even as people age and other health factors come into play.”

Particularly for mental health medication, where it can take a lot of time through trial and error to find the right medication, a test like this can be very helpful,” said Leonard.

MyDna also lists pain, cardiovascular, and gastrointestinal as conditions that can benefit from testing. There are other health related applications for the testing that are non-medical, such as nutrition and fitness.

“There is a cost related to the testing. It is $199 for the most complete test, which makes it not for everyone, but it can be valuable for some patients, and it is a one-time test,” said Chan.

The Pharmasave is also offering on-line screening clinics for medicinal cannabis from the company Hq3.ca.

“There is a lot of interest in cannabis for chronic pain, anxiety, and insomnia. Patients can meet, through a video link, with a nurse practitioner who can prescribe medical cannabis. The prescriptions are filled by a licensed producer, not our store, but again it is a service for our clients.”

Over the past two years, Inverary Pharmasave has contributed to community life in various ways, supporting Ken Garrett Park, Socks Kingston, and other initiatives, and has become a core business in the revived retail atmosphere in a growing area.

Offering new services, as pharmacies take on an expanded role as the healthcare system is reformed in Ontario, is one of Leonard’s goals for the business.