One recent Wednesday morning, before arriving to Whalley Avenue to open his pharmacy business for a day, Victor Fok drove to a patient’s house to teach them how to test their blood sugar levels, free of charge.
At Fok’s previous job at a large corporate pharmacy chain, he would never have had the time and incentive to prioritize patient education. Now, as a co-owner of the recently-opened True-Care Pharmacy in the Amity neighborhood, Fok and his team hope to reach community members where they live with personally-delivered prescriptions, immunizations, and education initiatives.
Mayor Justin Elicker and the city’s economic development leaders arrived at the pharmacy on Wednesday morning to celebrate the January opening of True-Care Pharmacy with cake and a ribbon cutting.
The pharmacy, started by two New Haven and Hamden-based families, specializes in personalized care delivered to patients’ homes, in addition to its physical storefront at 1300 Whalley Ave. in the Westville Plaza strip mall.
Fok had spent over a decade working at corporate pharmacies when the pandemic arrived in New Haven. He and his business partners watched patients struggle to find Covid-19 vaccines and realized that “there is not enough help for the patients.”
“There is no personalized care anymore,” said a part-time pharmacist who declined to provide his name. “Everything is so branded now.”
Victor Fok.
With a business of their own, Fok and co-owners Ulupi Shah, Tushar Shah, and Neha Agrawal “can run the business the way we want to,” Fok said, not having to answer to “higher-ups with no real connection to the pharmacy.“
The pharmacy is located in the Amity/Upper Westville neighborhood, blocks away from West Hills. It’s down the street from both Unity Pharmacy and CVS.
True-Care Pharmacy distinguishes itself with a commitment to door-to-door outreach, learning their customers’ names, and providing free and accessible health education, according to Fok.
The business is working with the Health Department to distribute Naloxone, an overdose prevention medication, to opioid users. The owners also hope to develop health and immunization education initiatives for the neighborhood.
“They’re part of the community,” said Economic Development Officer Kathleen Krolak.
The pandemic brought into relief that “so many people have been historically underserved” by medical institutions, said Mayor Elicker. He praised True-Care for a “compassionate” approach ensuring that “services are brought to the community in a neighborhood that, frankly, has struggled.”
Elicker noted that “we’re seeing a pretty big spike in the number of Covid cases” in New Haven. According to The New York Times, New Haven County has seen a 79 percent uptick in Covid-19 cases over the past two weeks. Elicker urged residents to get vaccinated, and to “wear your mask inside and to support other individuals’ decisions to wear their masks.“
Fok said his team can deliver and provide at-home education anywhere in New Haven and beyond.
Good luck to the owners. It sounds as though they are well-intentioned. Maybe it becomes the Visel's of Westville.
Unfortunately, the shopping center in which they are located has become a drug den and the source of several violent crimes. Amity Locksmiths relocated to Woodbridge after more than 20 years in that spot. And the veterinarian's office next door has made many complaints about people urinating in public in open view of their office windows.