By PCCA
 

This Profile in Personalized Medicine highlights Ginny Isbell, PharmD, and Terry Wingo, RPh, FACA, owners of Madison Drugs in Huntsville, Alabama. They have been proud PCCA members since 1997.

How did you start compounding? What led you to PCCA?

Ginny: I had a conversation with my cousin, who had been a marketer for PCCA, that sparked my interest in compounding. I had researched and compounded a few suspensions, but I didn't really know how important and necessary patient-specific compounding was until that conversation. I was then introduced to Terry Wingo, who presented compounding as an opportunity to continue my pharmacy education. I began working with Terry in 2006. I worked one week before I was off to Houston for PCCA's Primary Training (now known as CORE Compounding Training). I came back to the pharmacy asking to go to PCCA's Endocrinology Symposium and have not grown tired of learning yet.

What was your toughest patient problem? How did you solve it? Please be as specific as possible.

We had a gastric-bypass patient who could not get the correct dose of her medication in a commercially available tablet. I worked with her and her doctor to formulate a suspension, but even with all of my flavoring tricks, I could not please her taste buds.

We discussed other options. I knew the medication would have to dissolve quickly and easily for her to be able to absorb it, but at the same time not so fast that she would taste it. The prescription required more active powder than would fit in a tablet triturate, and adding sugar was not the best option for her.

We spent quite a bit of time developing a base and finding a mold that would work. We ended up with a wax-like tablet that was easy to swallow without tasting it, but would also easily melt once it reached the stomach. She loved this option.

What has been your most satisfying patient experience?

That’s a hard question to answer. Is it the person who has had shingles for weeks and is just now finding relief (and sleep), is it the person with multiple allergies who can now take their medication, or is it the woman who was able to get pregnant or the one who was able to stay pregnant this time? I don't know how to choose my most satisfying patient experience, but I do always like helping people who have been fatigued for a period of time. I love watching them get their life back after we work on balancing their hormones and supporting them with nutrients.

What is your favorite PCCA base, and why?

VersaBase® Cream, because most people with sensitivities can tolerate it and it’s useful for multiple applications from BHRT, dermatological, and even vaginal use.

What is your favorite PCCA educational event, and why?

My introduction to hormones at the Endocrinology Symposium 2006 is still my favorite PCCA event. I am so thankful I was able to learn from David Brownstein, Eldred Taylor, James Wilson, Jim Paoletti, David Zava and more at my first hormone conference. This was a perfect introduction to the hormone symphony. This is also where I learned how much I did not know along with what I needed to do to try to catch up.

What do you wish you could tell new compounders?

Never stop learning.

What is your favorite thing about your job right now?

Most everything, and the fact that I never get bored.

What do you enjoy for fun?

Being outside ... especially near water.