Working on a prescription for success

Kendrick is without its only pharmacy as Gritman Medical Center and Idaho State University hammer out a plan to make prescription medications available in the rural town.

That solution is at least four months away and would involve pharmacists based at ISU in Pocatello supervising drug dispensing in Kendrick through video feeds and other technology that cost about $75,000.

It's part of a pilot program ISU has introduced in Arco and Challis and is in the process of establishing in Council. The only communities that are allowed to participate in the program are those that don't have

pharmacies.

The ISU model requires at least one licensed pharmacy technician on the premises any time the business is open and keeping an inventory of drugs on site, said Rex Force, who supervises the school's college of pharmacy as vice president for health sciences.

Prescriptions are scanned into a computer and are verified by pharmacists in Pocatello three times during the filling process, including just before the prescription is handed to the customer, Force said.

The pharmacists review patient files for possible drug interactions and allergies. They check for accuracy in the type and the amount of drug and make sure correct instructions are provided to the patient. Pharmacists or student pharmacists are available to answer questions by telephone or by talking to each other on computer screens, Force said.

Gifts or stationery won't be part of the inventory, but some items such as canes, bandages or herbal remedies might be sold if it's found that won't compete with other Kendrick ventures, Force said.

"The beauty of this model is it does allow pharmacy services in a community where a traditional pharmacy wouldn't survive because this is such a volume-

driven business," Force said.

The strategy ISU will use is the latest development in a struggle that began two years ago to keep the Kendrick Red Cross

Pharmacy open. It started when its owner, Douglas Clayton, died unexpectedly at the age of 62, said his daughter, Heather Lawless.

As director of development and community engagement at Lewiston's Life Choices Clinic, Lawless said she had no training or experience in running a pharmacy.

She put the business on the market and hired a pharmacist on an interim basis, paying a going rate that was almost triple the salary her father allotted himself, Lawless said. "It was to the detriment of our family finances. It was extremely stressful."

Three potential buyers surfaced, but none of them made an offer. That left the partnership with Gritman and ISU as the best option and an opportunity she was grateful existed, Lawless said.

Gritman is involved because it operates a clinic in Kendrick, and its patients are having to drive about 30 minutes to Lewiston or Moscow for prescription drugs.

Putting the partnership together is taking longer than everyone involved anticipated. The pharmacy closed after Lawless sold the building to Gritman at the end of March, in a transaction that didn't provide enough to cover the pharmacy's debt, Lawless said.

Her talks with ISU about acquiring the business have been at a standstill since May, Lawless said.

The delay happened because ISU has temporarily put Kendrick on hold until it can get its third location in Council established, Force said.

ISU has found it doesn't have the capacity to work on two projects at once, Force said. "We are absolutely committed to Kendrick and the community. The timing of that is more in question because of other issues."

A grandfather clause that the Kendrick pharmacy had related to current state code is no longer valid, Force said. New plumbing, heating, air conditioning, ventilation and security will be installed to bring it up to standards, along with bathrooms that allow access for those with disabilities, Force said.

Aside from getting the building ready, ISU has to secure a number of approvals. It has the go-ahead from the Idaho State Board of Pharmacy, but not the Idaho State Board of Education and the ISU Foundation Board. The tele-pharmacy is a limited liability corporation of the foundation board, Force said.

"We know the community is basically holding its breath for this to occur," Force said. "We want it to happen as soon as possible."

---

Williams may be contacted at ewilliam@lmtribune.com or (208) 848-2261.