Well, this story has crossed my desk a few times in the last couple of days and I just had to figure it out! Not sure if many know, but someone called a doctor and had no clue who would show up. I am not surprised at all but I am definitely excited about who did and let me tell you a bit about him.
Meet Dr.Martez L. Prince! Mr.Prince has opened an independently owned BLACK-STAFFED premier pharmacy and wellness center based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Now, what is crazy, is that I searched and searched to do some research on him and could not find anything! I then proceeded to look deeper and came across a very influential site called BLACK POSITIVITY NEWS where A writer there seem to have had the same problem I did tracking this guy down! Well, it inspired them to actually find him and interview him. It was quite the hunt, but when you are eager to share information you make a way.
I then joined in to do the same and not only did I find out about Mr.Prince, but also a new publication that supports black community activist! (HYPER LINK BELOW). It is my pleasure to not only share the interview with you but the site as well. It is very informative. I hope you enjoy this article as much as I did as it proves determination is real. And when you are set on achieving a goal nothing can stop you but you.
Signing Off
-TB
https://blackpositivitynews.wordpress.com/
My name is Dr. Martez L. Prince, I am a 29-year-old independent pharmacist that currently reside in Charlotte, North Carolina. Born and raised in the small Florida city of Ft. Pierce. I began my pharmacy career as a cashier for The Medicine Shoppe under the director of my mentor Dr. Mark Leath. While working at the Medicine Shoppe I grew a great passion for pharmacy and patient care. I graduated from Ft. Pierce Westwood High within the top 10 of my class. In the fall of 2004 I started my college career at Florida A&M University. I quickly became involved in multiple campus clubs and organizations while matriculating through the pre-pharmacy program. Once I was accepted to Florida A&M University College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Science I lead the student body in many different capacities such as College President, Curriculum Board Member, and many other executive board positions.
Once I complete my classroom requirements I left Tallahassee, FL to complete my rotations in Miami, Florida. While on rotations I was able to excel in many different areas of pharmacy including Internal Medicine, Ambulatory Care, Emergency Medicine, HIV, Psych, Research and Pharmacy Management. Upon receiving my Doctorate of Pharmacy degree in 2010 from Florida A&M, I accepted a staff pharmacist position at Rite Aid Corporation which relocated me to Charlotte, NC. After 5 months of working as a staff pharmacist I was promoted to Pharmacy Manager. While executing my duties as Pharmacy manager I was able to acquire many skills necessary for the daily operations of pharmacy. I was blessed to learn the story of many of my patients. I saw a great need in the community in which I was serving. I was voted Favorite Pharmacist amongst my peers for 4 consecutive years. The patients treated me like family and I was able to gain their trust and respect in which was most important to me.
After returning from celebrating my 28th birthday in April patients greeted me at the pharmacy doors stating their awareness of my absences and how they had issues that needed to be addressed. When I identified my presence in the community I began to formulate a business plan that would allow me to “guide patients to greater health” in a more personal way. I began to develop the vision for Premier Pharmacy and Wellness Center. I shared my vision with friends over dinner and I won them over. The support began from the very moment of me sharing my dream of opening a pharmacy that focused on patient education, medication utilization and Medication Therapy Management. After 4 months of sleepless nights my dream was starting to finally come to fruition. My friends and support system listened to talk about my goals for the daily operations repeatedly until I’m sure they wanted to strangle me. I was truly blessed to have so much love and support during the process.
On October 3rd I opened my doors to the public. I chose October 3rd because it was the founder day of Florida A&M University. I felt like on that day great things began. The university was born to change lives forever and I opened my doors on October 3 to also change lives forever. Premier Pharmacy and Wellness Center is a company with Humanity at its forefront. We are always looking for new and innovative ways when “Guiding Patients to Greater Health!” It’s a blessing and honor to be able to impact patients health care through my very own pharmacy. I can now say ” I LOVE my job!
