Belew Drugs

What is Custom Compounding?

BELEW DRUG is different from most pharmacies.

We not only dispense medicines, all drug stores do that, but our skilled and specially trained staff has the ability to Compound Medicines, which means we are able to prepare medicines from raw materials.  We have been providing compounding services for years and have recently expanded these services with a new and larger state of the art compounding lab.

Because most Pharmacies do not compound many people do not know that it is an available option or even know what Compounding is. A custom compound is a prescription that we, as pharmacists,  prepare from pure, pharmaceutical-grade raw materials, in accordance with a doctor’s specifications for an individual patient’s needs.

Compounding is fundamental to the profession of pharmacy and was the standard means of providing prescription medications before drugs began to be produced in mass quantities by pharmaceutical companies.  Until a few decades ago compounding is what all Pharmacists did and is the reason why in parts of the world pharmacists are still commonly called chemists and pharmacies are called chemists’ shops.

For a number of good reasons custom compounding has experienced a rebirth.  It’s a truism that everyone is different and more and more often doctors and patients are coming to realize that the limited number of strengths and dosage forms that are commercially available simply do not meet the needs of many patients, and that these patients often have a better response to a customized dosage form that is literally “just what the doctor ordered”.

For example, a compounded medication can be made for a drug that is no longer commercially available, or for a drug that is no longer produced by the pharmaceutical industry for economic reasons, or drugs with poor stability, or to compensate for drug shortages.  For these and other reasons the demand for professional compounding continues to grow.

Here at Belew Drug we can provide just what the doctor orders by compounding:

• Unique dosage forms containing the best dose of medication for each individual.
• Medications in dosage forms that are not commercially available, such as transdermal gels, troches, “chewies”, and lollipops.
• Medications free of problem-causing inactive excipients such as dyes, sugar, lactose, or alcohol.
• Combinations of various compatible medications into a single dosage form for easier administration and improved compliance.
• Medications that are not commercially available.
• Medication Flavoring for children and others who have difficulty taking medications
• Suppository/Lozenge Dosages (created for patients who have difficulty swallowing or medications that are not effective orally)

Compounding Gives You More Choices Of Dosage Forms

Medicines come in many forms and Belew can provide you with whatever form works best for you and your family.

• Capsules: Medications can be compounded into customized capsule form to provide a solution in cases of alternate strengths or to omit allergies and/or irritants. Also, multiple medications can sometimes be combined into s single capsule dosage capsule or a delayed-release capsule to lessen the number of doses taken.
• Lozenges / Troches: When action is needed in the mouth, lozenges or troches can often times be the perfect solution. They can be placed under the tongue and allowed to dissolve, allowing the medication to enter the bloodstream easily and quickly. These dosage forms may also be flavored, making them ideal for geriatric or pediatric patients.
• Suspensions: There are many medications that are not readily available in liquid form. However not all patients deal well with swallowing tablets or capsules. We can provide a liquid form of medicine not readily available as a liquid.
• Transdermals: Transdermal compounding is widely used because it allows rapid absorption through the skin. Gels, creams, sprays and lip sticks are easy to use and effective in delivery of medication to the bloodstream. Belew Drug can compound transdermal forms of medicines not normally available in such form.
• Suppositories: Patients who cannot ingest medications orally are prime candidates for suppository compounding. These are available in various shapes, depending on administration to include rectal, vaginal or urethral. We can compound a variety of formulation with the innovative and patented Rectal Rocket a special suppository designed for treating hemorrhoids.  With suppositories medications are quickly delivered into the bloodstream for distribution. Suppositories are also used for delayed-release medications such as HRT, infection, inflammation and hemorrhoids.