Purdue debuts charitable pharmacy, enhances medication access at Gleaners

The Purdue Patternson-McCallum-Mareta Charitable Pharmacy (PMMCP) is set to open this month. It aims to expand critical medication access. 

The pharmacy project was announced over the summer, in partnership with Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana, operating out of its south Indianapolis location. 

Jasmine Gonzalvo, clinical professor and pharmacy specialist at Purdue, said the pharmacy opening is one of the new, more integrated services at Gleaners.  

“Gleaners has a very holistic approach of … lifting people up out of poverty, oftentimes, so this idea of combining food and medication access makes a lot of sense.”

The full-fledged pharmacy will provide free medications and select medical devices to people below 300 percent of the federal poverty line -- without prescription or insurance. 

Designed to to be a trusted health space, individuals will be able to receive high-quality care and food in one visit. Gonzalvo said the pharmacy will slowly ramp up work. 

“This is still considered a soft opening through the end of the year, as we figure out exactly what our operations are and how we can best serve, primarily the Gleaners population, also the central Indianapolis community,” Gonzalvo said.

Eligible individuals will receive medications, health education and pharmacist-managed services free of charge. The team will also work with those ineligible for free care to find affordable medication options. 

Medications from the charitable pharmacy will use a recyclable aluminum pill bottles, supporting both patient care and sustainability.

The PMMCP plans to be open on Mondays, with expanded hours in the future. 

The pharmacy is currently open to donations to improve services and operations. A full list of offered medications is available online.

Contact Reporting Intern Erika Kovach at ekovach@wfyi.org.