Sep 23, 2008
White County and surrounding areas are lucky to have Dr. Kelly Stanley, a compounding pharmacist, within easy reach. A compounding pharmacist is a pharmacist who has received additional training in combining any variety of drugs so that patients can use them as lotions or gels. A compounding pharmacist can also combine medicine to an exact amount and make pills for a tailored drug that your doctor might prescribe.
“I see myself as a problem solver,” Kelly said in an interview recently. “A patient tells their doctor - or me - what sort of problem they’re having with their medications and I figure out a way to deliver that drug - via lotion or gel - in order to get the best results with the fewest side effects.”
Kelly, and her pharmacist husband, Dr. Scott Stanley, each have separate pharmacies in Searcy. Kelly is at the Stanley Pharmacy Compounding Center at 2413 W. Beebe-Capps Expressway and Scott is in charge of Stanley Pharmacy at 2007 W. Beebe Capps Expressway.
Dr. Kelly Stanley, who graduated from Univ. of Ark. Medical Sciences with a doctorate in pharmacy in 1994, has been compounding medicine for six years. She opened her own store in 2005, after recovering from breast cancer in 2004. She had a double mastectomy and chemo and is doing quite well now.
“The Lord healed me,” Kelly says. “It was all in His hands and He healed me.” Kelly’s strong faith and positive attitude come forth in everything she does whether it is consulting with a patient, talking to a group about breast cancer survival or about compounding bio-identical drugs.
Kelly has hundreds of patients that come to her on a monthly basis for their hormone medications which she has compounded.The estrogen (called bi-est) is compounded from yams and soy plants and synthesized to the point that the body cannot tell the difference from that chemical and the one it produces itself. These are called bio-identical drugs.
“Many people just have problems with synthetic hormones and cannot tolerate them or have side effects which they don’t experience with the bioidentical hormones,” Kelly said. The hormones which Kelly compounds regularly are progesterone, bi-est (estrogen) and testosterone. She has menopausal women and men who go through andropause (the menopausal equivalent) who come to her for relief of their symptoms.
But the compounding does not stop there. Kelly provides medicines for pain relief: arthritis, TMJ and pulled and strained muscles. She also compounds for diabetic neuropathy and even makes veterinary preparations with flavors or gels for topical or oral use. There are also many dermatological lotions that are compounded for psoriasis and exema, Poison Ivy (a tincture to prevent it), a nail polish for nail fungus which you can use for 1-2 months to cure nail fugal infections and even a Nicotine lollipop.
“I’ve had lots of people who have quit smoking by using this Nicotine lollipop,” Kelly said. “When you get direct absorption, you cut down on liver
damage and certainly on any stomach upset when you use gels and lotions,” Kelly added.
Kelly says she has patients referred to her from doctors and many times she has patients who come into her office and ask her to call their doctors to consent to a compounding solution for their needs.
Kelly says she and her husband chose to go in business for themselves so they wouldn’t have to work on Sundays and they are in a position to witness their faith in the Lord in their work. They have three children: two daughters, Morgan, 10, and Sophia, 7; and one son, Andrew, 6.
Lorlei Thacker is the compounding technician and Kelly Wilkins, of Beebe, is her relief pharmacist. There are only four stand-alone compounding pharmacies in the state.
