The Walgreens at 4150 N. Atlantic Avenue in Cocoa Beach, Florida, won SingleCare’s Friendliest Pharmacy Team thanks to their unflagging warmth toward their customers. They welcome everyone by name, often with a hug, and treat their patients as family.

This store has been serving their community for more than 40 years. Anh Phan, Pharm.D., and Ronna Appleby, R.Ph., are the pharmacists on this six-person team. The four pharmacy technicians are Rosaliee Pesci, Kholoud Rasheed, Danielle Baily-Calvert, and Quynhnhi Tran. Together they help about 450 patients a day—and even more when the snowbirds from up north come to the beach during the winter months.

We spoke with Dr. Phan, Pesci, and Baily-Calvert about what drives them to go above and beyond for their customers.

What sets your pharmacy apart?

Anh Phan (pharmacy manager): My team treats every single patient as their family members—regardless of whether patients have insurance, regardless of whether patients have a Walgreens account. When they arrive at our pharmacy, we treat them like relatives. My technicians welcome patients by name. Before COVID-19, they usually welcomed them with a hug. Now, we do an air five or a fist bump.

I coach my staff: “What if that patient was your family member? Would you try your best—give 100%, 200%—to get them the best medication with the best deal?” Whenever they serve the customer, they keep that thought in mind. If you treat patients with heart, they feel it. That’s why patients appreciate our hard work. By the end of the year, they come back to us with a greeting card, cookies, or fruit. The way they appreciate our hard work is very valuable.

My team treats every single patient as their family members.

Rosaliee Pesci (pharmacy technician): Ahn is our leader. We look up to him. We respect him. He sets such a fantastic environment. We are humming or singing in between typing and answering phones. He’s always let us know the goal is to take really good care of our customers. We try to do that to the best of our ability every day. Some people have been up all night in the emergency room. Some have forgotten their medication at home and are about to board a cruise ship for a vacation. Our goal is to see each one of them as the person they are, like the person before them or that will come after them, and we’ll take good care of them during the moment that they’re here.

The first thing we do is greet every single person as they walk up. I had a lot of my customers—and the team teased me about it—who would come in before COVID-19 just for their hugs. I am a hugger. We want that initial impression to let our customers know that we care from the moment that they come face-to-face with us. A lot of our customers have been coming here for a long time. They’re sort of like family, along with our team members. We call ourselves the pharm-ily. We read between the lines of the patient’s needs. It’s not just about getting their medication and sending them on their way. It’s about seeing the full picture—helping them leave as promptly as they can, and finding what they need, even if it’s over-the-counter or front-of-store items.

Danielle Baily-Calvert (pharmacy technician): If our store doesn’t have a medication in stock, we will call around to other stores to try to find it. One of our technicians helps patients figure out their Medicare benefits, such as which insulin products they cover. Patients are so diverse in their needs. There’s always an opportunity to go above and beyond, whether it’s just a simple refill or trying to navigate the insurance process. I want to help because insurance issues or price issues are stressful for patients who aren’t feeling well. We get a lot of people who are vacationing here, and often their prescriptions will get rejected because they already filled them at home but forgot to bring them. We try to take care of that for them—with a vacation supply or a coupon.

We have so many times when customers come back and thank us for the effort that we put in. Rosaliee always tells customers she can’t wait to come give them a hug when the pandemic is over. It’s very personal for the customers. Even the snowbirds who leave for half the year and come back are always excited to see us. 

How does your team go above and beyond for the community?

Dr. Phan: We offer medication therapy management to anyone in the community. We have a separate room for these consultations where we can go over medications, how to use medical devices, like test strips for glucometers, properly, or even what over-the-counter treatments they are taking. We educate patients with one-on-one conversations. It doesn’t matter if the patient is filling with us or not. All we care about is making sure the patient’s taking the medication correctly and safely.

We run a lot of charity events in partnership with Walgreens—for local Ronald McDonald Houses and to benefit children and teachers going back to school. When a patient picks up a medication, we explain the different donation options. People often donate $1, $2, or $5 once they understand the cause. We’re number one in our region for donations.

Baily-Calvert: During the pandemic, we started doing COVID-19 testing and vaccination. Walgreens facilitated training, so technicians could learn to give vaccinations. It’s something I never thought I would do as a technician, that would never be in the scope of my authority. Now, we’ve been giving them to our community and to cruise ship clinics. 

How does your team work together?

Dr. Phan: Whenever we have a new team member start, we take a week or two to explain what we do, what’s important to the team, and how they can serve the patients in the best way they can. We just want to make sure when the patient leaves the pharmacy, they have what they need and they’re satisfied. 

We just want to make sure when the patient leaves the pharmacy, they have what they need and they’re satisfied. 

Baily-Calvert: This pharmacy is such a team effort. I’m fairly new and everyone has been very encouraging. They never brush off my questions. They show me the right way, answer my question, and help me learn to be a better technician.  

Pesci: We have a lot of years of experience in our pharmacy staff. We have young folks, students, grandparents—every age range. We bring a lot of life skills into our daily work. That makes us very well-rounded. We have folks from different countries and all kinds of different backgrounds.I didn’t go to school to do this until I was already in my 50s. We are diverse in every way.

We have a lot of energy. We’re really good communicators. We’re great supporters of one another. We know each other’s families, we know each other’s kids. When we don’t have to worry about COVID, we’re all going to go out and have one heck of a time. It really is a privilege to be a part of it.  We are a full circle team here.