KALONA

Between 2008 and 2022, almost 14% of Iowa’s pharmacies closed their doors, thanks to pressure from Pharmacy Benefit Managers, big box retailers, and mail order pharmacies. Independent, rural pharmacies struggle to survive, and when they cannot, communities find themselves stranded in pharmacy deserts. Residents pay more to get the medications they need, and the quality of their health care suffers.

It is thanks to exactly this phenomenon that One to One Pharmacy in Kalona acquired its new pharmacist, Jon Caston, late last year.

David McDanel, who owns One to One with wife Rebecca, needed a pharmacist to fill a vacancy. He heard rumblings that a pharmacy in Ottumwa might be downsizing, so he gave them a call, wondering if they had freed up a pharmacist who was looking for work.

Caston picked up the phone. Married a couple of years and with a one-year-old baby at home, he basically enjoyed his job, but he was starting to research other options.

“I had gotten into looking for some better alternatives to medications. I felt like people needed more natural opportunities, more alternatives,” he explains. “I had done some research online, looking for different programs, even nutritional counseling-type stuff.”

When McDanel called “out of the blue,” he told Caston “about some opportunities [at One to One] and these natural supplement programs he was wanting to get into. And I thought, well, that’s kind of what I’m looking for.”

Caston thought his wife may not like the idea of moving away from family, but “she was super pumped about it,” he says, and a month later they moved to Kalona. Shortly after, the pharmacy in Ottumwa closed.

One to One’s new pharmacist grew up in Bonaparte, Iowa, a pastor’s son and middle of 10 children, all homeschooled.

“I think it will be super nice to raise a family here,” he says of Kalona, and he and his wife look forward to homeschooling their own children, of which there will soon be a second.

Growing up, Caston loved science, and “I always wanted to be in the healthcare field,” he says. He enjoyed job shadowing at pharmacies when he was an undergrad, and he especially liked “the community aspect. You get to interact with the public and you are able to help people in that way.”

These last few months he’s been getting to know the Kalona-area community from One to One Pharmacy’s storefront at 214 5th Street. His work essentially entails “managing prescriptions for patients, making sure that we’re filling the right medications, making sure that there’s no interactions between all the other meds they take, and making sure they’re taking the right pill for the right condition.”

“It’s a lot to manage, especially during rush hour,” Caston admits. “I always like to devote the right amount of time to the patient, and that’s hard to do in the health care field.”

“Then we’re adding that piece of natural wellness,” he says, which may eventually include suggestions for lifestyle modifications, but for now is focused on supplements.

Caston concedes that it’s ironic – a pharmacy that would like to help people get off their medications – but that is his ideal.

“I don’t like to see people on chronic medications their whole life. It feels like they’re kind of trapped,” he says.

The solution, he believes, is to help people transition to eating healthier diets and getting sufficient exercise. Making these sorts of lifestyle modifications can be a challenge, he understands, so he sees the first step as suggesting appropriate supplements.

“What I want to be here for is to help support that transition,” he says.

One to One Pharmacy partners with Fullscript, which has a complete catalog of pharmaceutical-grade supplements, to provide patients with the supplements that would benefit them. These natural products work with your body to promote health. Whether you suffer nutrient deficiencies due to taking medications, hair loss, or allergies, Caston can help you find supplements to address these issues.

Our communities are fortunate to have an independent pharmacy located nearby in downtown Kalona. One that helps you sustain health, rather than simply manage disease, is a noteworthy bonus.

One to One Pharmacy is located at 214 5th Street, Kalona, and is open 9 a.m. to 5:25 p.m. Monday -Friday. Contact them at 319-656-3134 or visit onetoonepharmacy.com.