You won’t find Fourth of July or Halloween supplies, a can of soup or a box of Sham-Wows. What you will find is a group of consummate professionals dedicated entirely to health and healing, to the well-being of their friends and patients.

With the opening this spring of an additional new facility, opposite the Lewiston Hannaford and just out Sabattus Street from their familiar store, The Medicine Shoppe will more than double its size, add lots

of new equipment, products and services, and continue its long tradition of “caring beyond prescriptions.”

The Medicine Shoppe’s full array of durable medical supplies and equipment is moving to 683 Sabattus Street, while the original location will be remodeled and expanded with a larger selection of over-the-counter medications added to its dedicated prescription and award-winning customer services. As always, The Medicine Shoppe will specialize in building long-term relationships with patients, providers and hospitals. The Medicine Shoppe continues to offer free delivery to homes, offices, nursing homes and doctors’ offices in L-A. “We are affiliated with the St. Mary’s Center for Joint Replacement, the CMMC Physical Rehab department,

and just about every nursing and rehab facility in the area,” explained Richard Gregoire, public relations.

The Medicine Shoppe is a training pharmacy, with students from Husson College, University of New England and the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy able to experience a wider range of pharmacy operations and challenges than at any other Maine facility. Lou Gagne, one of three Registered Pharmacists on staff, specializes in compounding prescriptions from scratch, creating alternative formats such as transdermal, liquids, flavored liquids, powders, even gluten-free variations of customized medications. Referrals often come from other area pharmacies, and the Medicine Shoppe also compounds medications for pets, working with area veterinarian offices. Kitty won’t swallow pills? Maybe a specially compounded chicken-flavor might help. Patients receiving pediatric services in Boston are often issued prescriptions that must be custom-filled in Maine to satisfy insurance parameters, as well.

Having the compounding capacity on-site helps enrich the student experience, but Medicine Shoppe owner and pharmacist, Lana Hoang, explained, “We enjoy [being a teaching facility] as much as the students do. They bring new ideas to us, and we can learn from each other.” Hoang has owned the local Medicine Shoppe for four years, having apprenticed with its previous owner, Maurice Paradis, and having had a long career in what she described as “corporate pharmacies,” before that. “I really wanted to be in a place where I could have close, direct contact with my patients, and The Medicine Shoppe has been a dream come true.”

In addition to an expanded array of medical equipment, the new location will also house The Pink Ribbon Care Center, staffed by board-certified prosthetic fitter Joan Caron. The new Center will display a wider range of mastectomy products and clothing, including swimwear. Caron, who has been part of the Medicine Shoppe family for

41 years, will continue seeing patients

from Bennett Breast Center at CMMC. She will also start visiting Stephens Memorial Hospital in Norway monthly, to be more convenient for the many patients from western Maine who have relationships with the Medicine Shoppe.

Easier access for patients – in the new store, new Pink Ribbon Center, the expanded old store, now in Norway, and, as always, in healthcare facilities throughout L-A,

The Medicine Shoppe remains committed to your health.

The Medicine Shoppe

373 Sabattus Street

Lewiston, ME

(207) 783-3539

www.medicineshoppe.com/0550

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