Where do people get health information after they’ve left their doctor?
Eugenio Fernandez Jr. pondered that question as he considered where his career interests and education connected. As the recipient of a pharmacy degree from the University of Rhode Island and a master’s degree in public health from Harvard University, he was well-suited to provide the solution: a pharmacy that could double as a health education center.
Fernandez opened Asthenis LLC in July 2018 in the West End neighborhood of Providence. He is the only bilingual pharmacist in the neighborhood where he grew up, and which has a large population of Spanish-only speakers, he said. His business is the neighborhood’s first independent pharmacy.
As such, he carries the medications and provides services found in retail pharmacies, but he has more flexibility in services and pricing.
The renovated location includes space for group meetings.
“Because people are having trouble getting reliable access to health information, I wanted to” provide it for them, he said.
Mary MacDonald is a staff writer for the PBN. Contact her at Macdonald@PBN.com.