believeRX
Your Vital Link to Health and Well-being
Local pharmacist and entrepreneur, Ellen Phillips, recently realized her decades-long dream of launching a totally new concept in pharmaceutical care, believeRX. Located at 9627 Countryside Center Lane near the intersection of Middlebrook Pike and Bob Kirby Road in Knoxville, Ellen and her compassionate and caring team of highly trained pharmaceutical associates have embarked on a mission to help you to forget everything you thought you knew, and despised, about big box store pharmacies. Like much of today’s healthcare marketplace, pharmacies have also evolved into cold and impersonal assembly-line type experiences where customers are treated with indifference and a rare smile.
believeRX recognizes that your local pharmacy can and should play an important role in your family’s total healthcare and wellness alongside all of your other healthcare providers. Reminiscent of the local corner pharmacy you may remember as a child, believeRX combines the personal and caring touch of the almost non-existent neighborhood pharmacy with today’s rapidly evolving healthcare industry. With more than 20 years of first-hand experience as a pharmacist to draw upon, Ellen and her team have created a holistic and interactive approach to your pharmaceutical experience designed to help you “Live Your Best Life.”
In this issue of Everything Knoxville, Ellen shares the positive health and well-being benefits that believeRX offers to each of their patients.
EK: Tell our readers about yourself.
Ellen: I have both retail and some clinical hospital pharmacy experience and have been a retail pharmacy manager for most of my career. I have been a pharmacy preceptor for several pharmacy schools and won the Pharmacists Excellence Award in 2016. I am also a Certified Health Coach with BrainMD and ACE Fitness.
EK: Why do you feel that most pharmacies today offer such a highly impersonal patient experience?
Ellen: I believe in large part it’s because large pharmaceutical providers view the people entering their stores as numbers and not individuals with needs. There is little or no incentive offered by employers to their associates to provide customers with a higher level of customer service.
Another important component is one of staff selection. Are you simply filling a slot or are you adding a valued member to your already winning team? At believeRX, we search for highly skilled team members with a passion to serve our patients rather than someone just looking for a position. It really comes down to “passion” versus a “paycheck.”
EK: When employed by a large retail chain, did you ever experience “what if” moments as a pharmacist where there were lost opportunities to better serve your customers?
Ellen: Unfortunately, there were. As an employee, you were required to follow the rules. You follow an established routine that doesn’t encourage creativity or thinking outside the box. I’m nonetheless grateful for these real experiences, as I began to imagine how the services we provided could be improved upon to better serve the needs of our customers.
One “what if” moment for me that I will never forget included a terminally ill patient who was experiencing difficulty getting his required medications from his doctor’s office. I told him that he was the most important thing to me. I helped him get the needed medications. Once placed in a hospice, when he could no longer visit our Knoxville location, his mother began to pick up his medication for him. After he passed, she came to me and said, “You know why we came here, don’t you? We live in Crossville, and my son refused to allow the hospice to send his prescription anywhere else.”
That was a defining moment for me in my career and the foundation upon which we want to build believeRX. I’m truly grateful for our team, as well as the patients, most of whom I have been privileged to work with during the last 20 years. We have patients who have been with me since the beginning of my career, and they place their trust in our team to this day!
EK: Describe the believeRX business model and tell our readers about the services you offer.
Ellen: believeRX is a three-in-one business model. We are a retail pharmacy that offers home delivery after hours for our established patients, a specialty pharmacy that offers delivery and counseling in the home by a licensed pharmacist, and we offer the best pro-active health products over the counter. In fact, we are exactly the opposite of the typical pharmacy you are used to. All of our staff members receive additional training to become Certified Health Coaches, because we believe it’s time to focus on becoming the best version of ourselves that we can be.
Our services include:
» A full-service pharmacy that accepts all prescription insurance plans: If you discover that your medications are too expensive, we’ll work with you to find a lower cost alternative that puts your health first.
» After-hours delivery service: If it’s after hours and you need an urgent medication, we have you covered with our after-hours delivery service. Established patients can use our after-hours drop box for their prescription. Call the after-hours phone number and go home and relax while we take care of the rest. Once your prescription is ready, we’ll personally deliver it directly to your home.
» Specialty medications that are high-cost oral or injectable medications used to treat complex chronic conditions: Our goals are to find a way to get the medication covered, to meet the patient where they are and counsel them to get the best results by helping them treat or avoid side effects and by personally delivering to their homes.
» Vaccinations (including travel vaccines): We will also notify you when you are due for vaccinations in order to avoid immunization gaps.
» A series of medical screenings such as Hemoglobin A1c, Total cholesterol screenings, blood pressure, and blood glucose readings.
» We also offer genetic testing, which makes your medication selection more personal. There are two tests: PGx and CGx. These tests can help a patient avoid trial and error and also avoid major side effects. There is a test for regular medications and one for cancer patients to help select the correct therapy based on their genetics.
» We carry a large selection of CBD products in different formulations such as gummies, popcorn, creams, tinctures, flavored and unflavored, and much more!
» A large selection of Pro-Active Supplements: Not all vitamins are created equal, so innovation and experience matters. We will offer only the latest supplements with multiple health benefits, taking advantage of the newest technologies to deliver cutting-edge formulas.
» We offer three free 8-minute Bemer sessions. Bemer is a completely painless way to improve microcirculatory blood flow by up to 30%. With Bemer, you can improve blood circulation and increase your endurance.
» You also have the option to try red and infrared light therapy. Red light therapy uses low-level wavelengths to treat skin issues such as wrinkles, scars, and persistent wounds. Infrared light helps enhance circulation in the skin, modulate sleep, ease pain, reduce inflammation, and protect oxidative stress.
EK: What are your hours of operation?
Ellen: We are open 8:30 am to 7 pm Monday through Friday, 9 am to 5 pm Saturday, and 12 to 5 pm Sunday.
EK: Tell us how your motto, “Live Your Best Life,” impacts the customer experience at believeRX.
Ellen: At believeRX, we invite you to discover a level of compassionate care focused on you and your family that you might have thought no longer existed in today’s assembly line healthcare experience. Our team will listen carefully to you and provide you with a level of care designed to meet and exceed your unique needs. Not just another big box store pharmacy, believeRX is a pharmacy with a heart for your family. Our name says it all. “We Believe in You” and your goal for better health, well-being, and longevity.
EK: How can our readers learn more about believeRX?
Ellen: Visit our website at www.mybelieveRX.com or call us at 865-214-6672.
believeRX
9627 Countryside Center Lane
Knoxville, TN 37931