By Kirk Kern
Nothing says “community” more than having a pharmacist who can call her customers by their first name.
That’s the case at the Smith’s Pharmacy in the Skye Canyon Marketplace as Lisa Barnard is not only the pharmacy manager, she’s also a resident of the community.
“I enjoy helping people by providing medication knowledge and advice,” said Barnard, who has worked for Smith’s for 19 years after previously working at hospitals and in home health care. “Talking to my patients face-to-face and creating a personal connection is incredibly rewarding.
“Being a community pharmacist puts me on the front lines of health care, and I take it very seriously. I still love what I do and challenge myself every day to do more, learn more and give back to the community every day.”
An example of this personal service was Barnard realizing a regular customer had been prescribed an antibiotic that she was allergic to. She called the customer to verify and then called the doctor, who changed it to another medicine.
“The customer still reminds me that I saved her from a severe reaction,” Barnard said. “This is what we do as a pharmacist every day. We’re here to provide safe medications between the doctors and the customers.”
Barnard particularly enjoys the elderly customers waving to her in the pickup line who have been there since she opened the pharmacy six years ago. She also recalls helping a customer who had moved to Skye Canyon and transferred her information from another pharmacy. She had a problem in the past with the pharmacy not having a specific medication in stock.
“She’s been with me for years now and we’ve never had any issues,” Barnard said. “She calls to check in with me. I always get a Christmas card.”
In April, Barnard was chosen by Kroger (Smith’s parent company) to represent Nevada in Washington DC at an Rx Impact Day on Capitol Hill. She was able to meet with Nevada senators and representatives to discuss the issues community pharmacies face. This is a concern particularly in the rural areas, where pharmacies have gone out of business and left these patients with limited access.
Barnard also represents community pharmacists on an experiential committee for Roseman University, where she also serves as an adjunct professor.
“I love to mentor and teach these students at the pharmacy school,” she said.
Barnard moved to Las Vegas in 1993 after graduation from the University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy in 1991. The Smith’s pharmacy opened in Skye Canyon in 2018 and she moved to the community in 2019.
“I’ve been here to see the amazing growth of homes and businesses,” she said. “I love living in Skye Canyon because of its location and beautiful mountains. It’s close to hiking, not only to Mount Charleston, but outlying areas on 95 North like the Desert National Wildlife Refuge in Corn Creek, Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Amargosa Valley and Death Valley.
She’s made a lot of friends with her neighbors in Skye Canyon and always supports and patronizes local businesses.
“I look forward to more coming close to our area,” she said. “I feel incredibly honored to live and work in such an amazing community.”