At a very early age, James Lindsay became interested in pharmacy as a career. When he was just five-years-old, his grandmother was diagnosed with COPD. She was also diabetic. Lindsay often accompanied her to the local pharmacy.
“It was a small town pharmacy—they were very nice, the pharmacist was very personable,” Lindsay recalled.
When his grandmother passed away, the pharmacy staff came to her funeral.
“That really left a great impression on me,” he said.
In high school, his interest in pharmacy was further piqued.
“There was a barbershop that I went to that was actually a pharmacy too,” he explained.
It was the pharmacist there that encouraged Lindsay to consider pharmacy school.
After completing his undergraduate degree in molecular biology at Auburn University, Lindsay decided to obtain a master’s degree in public health from Mercer. The goal, he said, was to make himself a more well-rounded individual in healthcare. Shortly after obtaining his MPH, Lindsay began looking into pharmacy schools and learned about PCOM School of Pharmacy.
"Just because you are a pharmacist, that does not mean you have to dispense. You have a lot of expertise you can use in other areas."
Lindsay applied and became part of the inaugural class—an experience he described as “unique.”
“For a whole year, we were the only class there,” he recalled.
The campus—a former warehouse in Suwanee, Georgia—was one of the unique aspects of the experience.
“It was very airy and open,” he said. “Other schools were more stuffy and concentrated.”
When touring other campuses, Lindsay noted it could be difficult and time-consuming to navigate to the classroom buildings from the parking areas.
“At PCOM, you drive up and you can get to class from your car in less than three minutes,” he said.
The small size of the school provided advantages beyond the compactness of the facilities.
“Everything was accessible,” he said, citing the proximity of Student Affairs, Financial Aid and other student services. “Having an issue that could be resolved very quickly, that was definitely a big plus.”
Lindsay also appreciated the easy access to instructors.
“We got a lot of one-on-one time with the professors and we really built a special bond,” he said. “I definitely loved how small it was. We knew everyone. I really loved that experience.”
“Having more one-on-one time with professors really gave me the confidence to be a better overall pharmacist and a better overall healthcare provider,” he added.
Prior to enrolling at PCOM School of Pharmacy, Lindsay worked as a pharmacy technician at CVS. Upon graduation, he continued working in retail pharmacy at CVS where he ultimately advanced to pharmacy manager. After 13 years in various roles at the company, Lindsay decided to move into managed care pharmacy, taking a role as a pharmacy consultant at Elevance Health.
“[Managed care] is a collaboration with insurance companies and providers in order to have the most cost effective care,” Lindsay explained.
Lindsay’s job is to work with patients to ensure they take their medications properly, especially maintenance medications such as those for diabetes, high blood pressure and other chronic conditions.
“If you don’t take those medications, what happens? Hospitalizations,” he said. Those hospitalizations are a cost not only for the insured, but also for the insurance companies.
“That’s where pharmacists come in,” Lindsay said. “As pharmacists, what we do is reach out to our members and make sure they take their medications. We’re there to reinforce the importance of taking this medication.”
During these consultations, Lindsay can answer questions the patient may have and reinforce messaging the patient may have received from the prescribing doctor. The objective, he added, is to help the patient stay healthy and prevent hospital readmissions.
"Having more one-on-one time with professors really gave me the confidence to be a better overall pharmacist and a better overall healthcare provider."
According to Lindsay, his training at PCOM School of Pharmacy not only provided him with the skills that helped him succeed as a retail pharmacist but also as a pharmacy consultant in managed care pharmacy.
“We had a lot of training scenarios, a lot of one-on-ones,” he said. “They had us practice counseling. That’s what I do every day.”
Lindsay credits that practice with helping to prepare him for his role as a managed care pharmacist.
“We also had a pharmacy communications class which really helped,” he said. “We have this technical and medical knowledge, but we have to know how to break it down into layman’s terms.”
Lindsay encourages current and prospective pharmacy students to explore the various options available to those with a Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree.
“The main two things that people think of when they think of pharmacy are retail and hospital, but there are a lot of other things out there,” he said.
Lindsay believes pharmacists have a skillset which prepares them for many careers in the medical arena.
“Just because you are a pharmacist, that does not mean you have to dispense,” he said. “You have a lot of expertise you can use in other areas.”
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