True-Care takes its services to people

NEW HAVEN — A new, independent pharmacy on Whalley Avenue aims to take its services to the people, going beyond prescription delivery to do medication counseling in-person or via video and even perform house calls to provide COVID-19 vaccinations or other shots for people who can’t get out.

True-Care Pharmacy, part of the Health Mart association of independent pharmacies, opened in January at 1300 Whalley Ave. It’s located in a strip mall (also home to Amity Safe & Lock Co. and West Rock Wine & Liquor) between Davis and Anthony streets adjacent to the city’s Westville, West Hills and Amity sections.

Mayor Justin Elicker and other city officials joined True-Care’s owners and employees Wednesday for a ceremonial ribbon-cutting to celebrate its arrival.

“What most impresses me and excites me about this model” is that “they actually go out to community,” Elicker said.

“They deliver” both medication and advice “to people’s homes,” he said. “This kind of model, where services go out to people in their homes” is the kind of model that will succeed right now, Elicker said.

“They’re part of the community,” said city Economic Development Officer Kathleen Krolak.

While chain pharmacies also deliver, “we can definitely do it in a more timely manner,” said TrueCare co-owner and pharmacy manager Victor Fok.

True-Care can provide medication-related counseling over the phone, via Zoom or FaceTime or even in person when someone needs to be shown how to administer something, Fok said.

“I did go to a person’s house and teach home how to use a glucometer,” used to measure the level of glucose in someone’s blood, said Fok, a native of Hong Kong who has been in the U.S. for many years.

“We want to make sure that people adhere to their medications,” but “often, it’s what you don’t need as well as what you need” that people need to know, he said.

To promote the business, staff actually have been going door-todoor and visiting nearby churches to connect with people, Fok said.

Part of True-Care’s vision “is to improve access to medications, medication adherence, and wellness through enhanced outreach services that include home delivery of medications, in-home consultations, health care screenings and immunizations,” the city said in a news release.

“Additionally, they are developing a platform that will allow healthcare professionals and pharmacists to collaborate to better provide customers with safe, effective and timely access to medications,” it said.

Elicker used the opportunity to remind city residents, many of whom are no longer wearing masks — even as COVID numbers rise again — “that we’re in the middle of a pandemic right now” and to underscore the continued importance of vaccination.

“There’s overwhelming evidence” that vaccinations “can keep you out of the hospital,” he said.

Manish Garg, a part-time pharmacist at True-Care whose wife, Neha Agrawal, is among the four owners, said True-Care is working with the municipalities it serves to get a grant to deliver nalaxone, often sold under the brand name Narcan, “to every person who is taking opioids,” to use if they ever experience an overdose.

Garg and Agrawal, both natives of northwest India and longtime area residents, each have other jobs in addition to True-Care. Agrawal manages information technology for Yale University; Garg works for Bristol-Myers Squibb.