Sozo Wellness Pharmacy strives to meet needs in Dunbar Community
Shadreka McIntosh, owner of Sozo Wellness Pharmacy talks about the challenges she faces and what she has learned in the last year.
Amanda Inscore, Fort Myers News-Press
Shadreka McIntosh’s desire to give back to the community inspired her to open Sozo Wellness Pharmacy in the heart of the Dunbar community of Fort Myers.
“I always felt like I was being bound by corporate structures and rules and I couldn’t practice the way that I wanted to,” said 42-year-old-McIntosh. “I’ve always had that community-minded spirit within me and wanted to give back. My family goes back four generations here. I grew up across the street from here in a housing project. Not only is my family deeply rooted here, Black pharmacists and healthcare professionals aren’t easily accessible.”
Sozo Wellness Pharmacy opened its doors in Fort Myers at 3510 Dr Martin Luther King Jr Blvd Ste 1 in July 2021. The pharmacy offers a variety of services including free home delivery, affordable prescription prices, herbals and supplements, immunizations, lab testing and medication check-up and cost reviews.
McIntosh said people in the community would reach out to get advice before she opened her pharmacy.
“People would find ways to contact me and say, ‘Hey I can’t afford this medicine can you help me?’ said McIntosh. “But then it would evolve to other needs that kept them from being able to address these medication related issues. I fought the idea of opening a pharmacy because I felt like I couldn’t be a business owner. But it made sense for people to have a place to come as opposed to having to know someone to access me.”
McIntosh said her dream turned into more than just opening a pharmacy.
“The dream was in me to start with a pharmacy but eventually expand to a whole wellness center where the goal of it is to really engage, educate and empower people helping them to make healthy decisions,” said McIntosh. “When I say health, not just in the sense of physical health, but mental, emotional, all the social determinants of health. So access to healthy food and health literacy are all important.”
McIntosh said the last year has been eye opening.
“I wasn’t aware of how many people in the community didn’t know about medication related issues and how valuable having access to an independently owned pharmacy is,” said McIntosh.
In 2004 McIntosh received a doctorate in pharmacy from Florida A & M University and in 2020 a master’s degree in integrative health from George Washington University.
Before stepping out on her own, McIntosh worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs in Cape Coral for five years. Before that she worked for insurance companies and gained some experience in community pharmacy as well.
McIntosh said growing up she wasn’t exposed to a lot as far as what options were available career wise. A connection she made while a junior in high school led her on the path to becoming a pharmacist.
“I was Black, I was pretty smart, all I really knew was that I could be a teacher,” said McIntosh. “I realized that wasn’t for me. I thought about being a doctor. I realized that I don’t like blood and certain smells get to me. I thought, ‘What else can I do as a medical professional?’ It came down to physical therapy and pharmacy. After shadowing a physical therapist, I realized it was too touchy feely. A lady that went to church with me was a pharmacist. So I talked to her and she told me the different paths you can take. I applied and got in. It just worked out.”
Representation matters, said McIntosh.
“If I don’t ever see someone like me doing something different I don’t know that I can do it too,” said McIntosh. “So that was another reason why opening a pharmacy was important, especially in this community where I’m from.”
McIntosh said if she could give her younger self any advice it would be to make time to acknowledge the journey.
“I would definitely tell myself to slow down and celebrate your wins,” said McIntosh. “I have a tendency to check things off a list and not really reflect on the things that I’ve accomplished. I’m definitely learning that now.”
Near future plans are in the works for Sozo Wellness Pharmacy.
“I’m working on expanding into the space next door,” said McIntosh. “We want to grow the wellness side of things. One big program that I’m really focused on is medication assistance and access. We have a community of people that do have insurance, but then we have people that are uninsured. That’s the thing about being in this underserved community. I want to be able to give people access to services. We want to have someone onsite to do urgent care visits on a cash base model.”
Even though the pharmacy was one of many small businesses impacted by Hurricane Ian, business continued.
“The power was out for six days,” said McIntosh. “We lost a lot of refrigerated meds like vaccines. We haven’t been able to replace those medicines yet. We’ve been playing it by ear. We were without internet. We are back up and running as of today allowing us to operate more efficiently. Even though we were without we were still able to meet the needs of the community when other pharmacies were closed.”
Tisha Williams, a customer since the pharmacy opened its doors, transferred her prescriptions from a commercial pharmacy chain and encourages others to do the same.
“There were several reasons why I transferred my prescriptions,” said 44-year-old-Williams. “One is because I believe in supporting Black owned businesses, especially here in the Dunbar community – being a product of Dunbar myself. Knowing her reasons for putting this pharmacy here for our people to have access to their prescriptions and access to resources.
“She’s someone that looks like us and understands the whole genetic makeup of you being African American. I trust her judgment and to be able to support what she’s doing right here in our own backyard.”
Williams said McIntosh offers a personal touch when it comes to the needs of her customers.
“She breaks pharmacy terms down in layman’s terms so that they understand,” said Williams. “There are so many other things that she offers besides filling prescriptions. When COVID hit she served as a resource. She served as a site where you could get tested and get your vaccines and you felt comfortable taking our children and older citizens of the community felt comfortable going there.”
If you go
WHAT: Sozo Wellness Pharmacy
WHERE: 3510 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Suite 1, Fort Myers
HOURS: Monday, Tuesday and Thursday 9am – 5pm; Wednesday and Friday 9am – 3pm.
PHONE: 239-488-2580
The Gem Next Door is a series that highlights local entrepreneurs operating businesses in your neighborhoods. If you are the owner of a business or if you want to recommend a business for recognition, please contact reporter Erica Van Buren at [email protected]. Be sure to include your name, phone number and a little bit about the history of the business.
This content was originally published here.
