Nightingale Drug settling in at its new location on Rossville Road; Grand Opening is this Thursday

by Lissa Blake

The public is invited to stop in during Nightingale Drug’s grand opening Thursday, July 1 from 4-7 p.m. The newly opened pharmacy is located at 606 Rossville Road in Waukon.

Co-owners Linda, Eric and Sylwia Nightingale are eager to meet the community, where they recently opened their eighth small-town pharmacy.

Linda Nightingale is a graduate of the College of Pharmacy at the University of Iowa. In the late 1970s, she convinced her father, John Law, to remodel a building that would become her first pharmacy. Despite the odds, Linda was able to grow a successful practice and expand. She has always felt it was important to bring pharmacy services to small-town Iowa.

Linda’s son, Eric, graduated from the University of Iowa with a Management Information Systems degree which allowed him to become a management consultant and software engineer. He spent 10 years working for IBM and another 10 working for a start-up company in California. Eric’s wife, Sylwia, was educated in Poland and is a certified pharmacy technician.

WHY WAUKON?
The Nightingales have been operating a telepharmacy in Postville for the past three years, and were looking for another location to support that operation.

“We like the area and needed support for our telepharmacy. When Shopko closed, I hired (Waukon area native) Fran Liddiard and he thought Waukon would be a good community,” said Linda.

A SMALL DELAY
After the Nightingales decided to open their pharmacy in Waukon, their plans were somewhat delayed by last year’s pandemic.

“We found ourselves in situations we hadn’t been in before. We delayed the opening of our new store, but we were able to meet a lot of people through our COVID-19 vaccination clinics,” said Eric.

Eric said when COVID hit, the company found itself relying on a variety of local volunteers and healthcare partners. “We secured a big space at the Lutheran Church in Postville and the Presbyterian Church in Waukon. Through a series of clinics, we were able to give between 2,000 and 3,000 shots in Allamakee County,” said Eric.

He added that organizing the clinics required huge effort and organization on the part of their volunteers. “We needed partners, such as Allamakee County Health. We received many calls from doctor’s offices. It really gave us a chance to work with them at a level where we don’t on a regular basis. And the more people we met in Waukon, the more excited we were about opening our store. Each community has a different personality and the people we met fit very well with our idea of how we do business,” said Eric.

“We have no corporate over-structure. So we try to support local communities, because we wouldn’t be here without their support,” he said.

“We are extremely appreciative of the warm welcome we have received from the residents of Waukon and the medical professionals in the area. Additionally, we developed many personal relationships in the area through the COVID clinics we held in the first six months of 2021 and we look forward to the continuation and expansion of those relationships,” said Linda.

Over the last year, the Nightingales hosted vaccination clinics in Allamakee, Clayton, Dubuque and Jones counties. Local volunteers who pitched in included Corrine Cook, Mary Axmear, Jenna Jones, Gail Lansing, Jeanie Schulte, Chris Rumph, Jean Rea, Barb Tieskoetter and more.

LOCAL STAFF
The Nightingales hired Matthew Maker, former owner of Donlon Pharmacy in Decorah, as their pharmacist in charge. “Matthew is a very knowledgeable, experienced pharmacist and he is eager to help people with their questions,” said Linda.

The Nightingales also asked Liddiard, who works for them in their Dubuque location, if he would consider being Maker’s relief pharmacist when needed, as he often travels back home to visit family. Eric’s wife, Sylwia, is a certified pharmacy technician, and the family recently hired another new pharmacist and a certified pharmacy technician who will be starting soon.

“We also are in need of additional certified pharmacy technicians,” said Linda, adding the business is willing to train someone in that role. She added traditional certified pharmacy tech training at a community college costs around $12,000, and Nightingale Drug is willing to provide the right person(s) with on-the-job training. Anyone who thinks they may be interested can contact Eric at opportunity@nightingaledrug.com.

THEIR PHILOSOPHY
The Nightingale Drug family prides itself on providing excellent service to their patients. “We are a small, family-owned, independent pharmacy business. Our emphasis is on providing prompt, friendly, professional service…  a level of service which is often diminished by high-volume chain pharmacies,” said Linda.

In addition, the Nightingales said they love getting to know their patients on a personal level as well as their medical needs. “We are proud and happy that we are able to give back to the communities in which we serve. We all live in small towns and understand the symbiotic relationship between small-town business and small-town communities,” said Linda.

STOP ON IN
Linda said she hopes the community will stop in this Thursday, July 1 to meet the staff at the new Nightingale Drug location. “We would like everyone to stop in at our grand opening, have a pork chop on a stick and give us a chance to meet them. We hope it will be a good time,” she said.