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Charleston pharmacist wins national award
CHARLESTON, Mo. — The Logan name is synonymous with professionalism and innovation.
Those two intangibles served as a precursor to national acclaim as Richard “Tripp” Logan recently was the recipient of the 2024 National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) Willard B. Simmons Independent Pharmacist of the Year Award.
Nominations were made and Logan accepted the award in Columbus, Ohio, in October.
Being a second-generation pharmacist, Logan said the award is a testament to his professionalism and innovation, but it also speaks volumes on his father’s mentorship his and staff.
“The organization represents all of the independent pharmacies and the small chains in the country. Honestly, it’s really humbling to even be considered as pharmacist of the year with an organization like that,” Logan said. “I have been really blessed. So, I learned from my dad [Richard Logan Jr.] and a lot of the pharmacists that I worked for when I was younger.”
For more than 20 years, Logan has been consistently looking for ways to innovate, improve pharmacy practice transformation and advance independent pharmacy practice in Missouri and across the United States.
The award epitomizes “exemplary professional leadership and service to community and commitment to independent pharmacy,” according to a press release.
“I have grown up with a lot of really great mentors,” Logan said. “Still, surrounded by great pharmacists and staff and community health workers who do all of the hard work, I just get to reap the benefits of that, which feels weird to even get an award for that when so many other people are doing the work. It is not just me.”
In short, Logan would not have sustained the success without his team members.
“They are amazing. We have surrounded ourselves, the last few years, with some of the best pharmacists and techs and community health workers that are in the region, and some outside of the region. We have been blessed to have them on board,” Logan said. “They are always forward thinking and trying to find ways to take better care of people in these communities. What I am most proud of is the willingness to work with others, so we work with Missouri Delta, St. Francis, with SEMO Network. We work with a lot of other independents in the area. We are working really closely with the pharmacies in Sikeston.”
At a time when pharmacies in larger markets are closing, as other options have become viable, especially for the elderly, small-market pharmacies such as the Logans’ L&S Pharmacy in Charleston, Benton Pharmacy and the Sikeston Pharmacy are imperative to their respective communities.
Walgreens is planning to close around 1,200 locations, as the drugstore chain and its rivals struggle to define their role for U.S. shoppers who no longer look to them first for convenience, according to the Associated Press.
“When you think about a prescription that you pick up, a lot of people just need the prescription, but some need a pharmacist. The reality is about 80-to-90% of people just need a prescription, but that 10-to-20 percent, they need a pharmacist, they need a vaccine, they need support,” Logan said. “They may need interactions. It may be too expensive. They have a lot of different questions. For that group of people, they don’t have many options. Having access to a medical professional that you can walk in and talk to, like in Southeast Missouri, it is vitally important.”
In addition, the family owns SEMO Rx Care Coordination, an outcomes-based care coordination and medication optimization center. SEMO Rx Pharmacies and the SEMO Rx Care Coordination Center, each maintain a strong local focus on patient care, care coordination, health equity, social determinants of health and positive health outcomes, the release stated.
Currently, approximately 40 employees are on staff.
Logan is a 1995 graduate of Charleston High School prior to graduating from Southeast Missouri State University and the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Pharmacy.