It’s not quite a pharmacy, but Donnelly residents may no longer need to commute to Cascade or McCall to pick up common prescription medicines.
Cascade Medical Center announced this week that a pharmaceutical dispensing machine has been added to the Donnelly Urgent Care & Family Medicine Clinic, which the hospital operates.
The machine, called InstyMeds, is a large vending machine containing the most commonly prescribed medications, as well as a variety of common over-the-counter medications.
“Having InstyMeds at the Donnelly clinic helps our patients feel better, faster,” said Heather Lewis, a physician assistant who sees patients in both Cascade and Donnelly. “Giving our patients access to medications at the point of care saves them time, gas money, and the hassle of going to another location to fill a prescription.”
Pharmacy desert
Donnelly qualifies as a “pharmacy desert,” per the National Institutes of Health, because the nearest pharmacies are more than 10 miles away.
Currently, there are only three full-service pharmacies in Valley County. Medicap Pharmacy in Cascade opened last year after Watkins Pharmacy burned down in February 2022.
In McCall, full pharmacy services are offered by Albertsons and Rite Aid, though the corporate chain is on shaky ground and appears to be at risk of closing soon, as Valley Lookout reported.
Now, Donnelly patients have access to common antibiotics, steroids, and asthma inhalers through InstyMeds. The machine also offers allergy medicine, pregnancy tests, and painkillers like liquid Tylenol. Narcotics are not available through the machine.
InstyMeds accepts insurance and can process copays through credit card payments. The machine is located within the Donnelly clinic at 454 W. Roseberry Rd. Suite 103.
The clinic is open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. It opened in April 2024 and saw just over 2,000 patients in its first year, said Tom Reinhardt, CEO for Cascade Medical Center.
“Right now we’re seeing about seven patients per day for anything from mountain bike wrecks to sore throats and regularly scheduled checkups,” Reinhardt said.
The clinic offers walk-in visits and primary care visits by appointment. It includes a portable X-ray unit and a laboratory.
St. Luke’s McCall also offers “medication lockers” in which prescriptions can be filed and stored for 24-hour pickup. Patients use a one-time code to access the locker and are notified by text or email when their prescription is ready for pickup.
