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Meet Paula Beougher of AZ MIX in North Phoenix

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Paula Beougher.

Paula, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Let me just say this to get started. My name is Paula Beougher, and I don’t like to set definitive plans, and I am completely unable to be content or complacent with my life (do not confuse this with the inability to be happy).

Looking back most of my life, I have always been this way to some degree. I am the youngest, and my sister was always the planner and overachiever, my brother is brilliant, and no one ever knew what to expect from me. My family learned to expect the unexpected. It drives my husband, Chad, crazy too. He has learned to deal with it through the years, and, in many ways, mellows me out. So, sit back and enjoy the tale of how AZ MIX compounding pharmacy was formed.

At the age of 18, I moved from Mississippi to Tucson, Arizona, for college. I did not know one person, but I thrived in that kind of situation. I graduated with a degree in History (my passion) and Chemistry. An odd combination I know, but please refer to the opening sentences and remind yourself to expect the unexpected.

My first few jobs out of college were working in labs. One was a water lab, the other a blood lab. Very mundane and routine, two things I am not. One of the cool things about working third shift in a blood lab is that everyone gets to know each other. I learned that pretty much everyone there was trying to get into medical, dental, vet, PA, or pharmacy school. I thought pharmacy school sounded interesting. I took the PCAT (entrance exam), applied and to my surprise got into the only school I applied too, Midwestern University.

Oh, and I forgot to mention, along the way I met this beautiful human being, Chad Beougher. We were married in 2004. By the time I got into pharmacy school, we had been married for almost three years, and he wanted to start having kids. He likes to plan things. Pharmacy school put a delay in his plan, as Midwestern is an accelerated program (3 years instead of 4).

Upon graduation from pharmacy school in 2009, two important events happened. I finally got pregnant, after a year of trying to conceive, and I accepted a Pharmacy Manager position at a Walgreens in Peoria, AZ. So, we moved back to Phoenix (my last year of school Chad got a job in Dallas, so I finished my rotations in Texas). Moving back to Phoenix was very exciting. Della was born in 2010. Avery Belle followed her 15 months later(yes two girls, 15 months apart), again, expect the unexpected.

I started feeling very run down and achy starting in 2015. I could not focus and started getting regular headaches. I decided to act. I saw prescriber after prescriber. They prescribed several medications to “band-aid” the problems, but never fixed what was broken. I realized one day that I went from taking one medication before having children to taking 6 or 7 medications a day, and still wasn’t 100 percent.

Fast forward to 2018(this is when the story gets good). After interning and working for Walgreens for ten years, I hit a wall. I was 40 years old, managing the most terrific Walgreens in Anthem, AZ with the most amazing store Manager (hard to find), making great money, putting money away for retirement, kids’ college, and savings. I was content, BORING, still tired, run down, and getting headaches every other day. I couldn’t take it; I started a quest to find something more where I could truly help myself and others. I wanted to make an impact. I wanted everyone to know me, and I wanted to know them. I wanted them to know I was making a positive impact on their lives and change the way I was living too. I wanted to make a difference.

The first thing I did was what I like to call, go rogue on my career. I left Walgreens for a more consistent schedule. I settled on the small company and became Pharmacist in Charge of their pharmacy, Valley of the Sun. The compounding department needed a ton of help. I recruited a former technician, Taeho Ham. Taeho was the most experienced compounder that I had worked with previously. At Valley of the Sun, Taeho and I built the compounding business. I developed a close connection to the compounding patients. Also, in addition to being licensed in TX and AZ, I also became licensed Oregon, Colorado and passed the licensing tests for Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Utah. I learned the business component of Pharmacy. Unfortunately, I witnessed first-hand, how hard it is for independent pharmacies to survive in the industry. The owners of Valley of the Sun had to close shop on the pharmacy in 2019.

Additionally, late in 2018, I started a journey to cure myself and to see if I could do the same for my patients. I had enough of taking 6 or 7 medications per day. I spent ten years in retail watching people do the same, only to be taking 10-20 medications by the time they are 60. Out of desperation, I went and had my hormones evaluated. I soon found that I had a hormone imbalance. I started therapy, and it changed my life. I am back to having more energy. I don’t need all the medications I was previously on. I have headaches less frequently, and I am truly on the road to recovery. I tell my story because I want to help others.

That led me to, per Robert Frost, take the road less traveled, and that has made all the difference. We (Taeho and I) opened AZ MIX pharmacy in May 2019. I would like to say I started AZ MIX to fix others, which is part of the truth. AZ MIX was invented because there is a serious need for pharmacists and pharmacies that practice with this belief.

Has it been a smooth road?
Nothing is ever smooth!!! Although I am a huge believer in fate and circumstances working out if something’s truly meant to be. I had a ton of help from former mentors. I was actually very surprised about the number of people that took time out of their schedule to meet with me.
I would say that I struggled early on trying to find the right people to work with. It takes a very brave person to put up with me all the time (ask my husband). Initially, everyone liked the idea and wanted a piece of it, but also wanted a guarantee which is not something I can provide.

Additionally, I struggled with business language/set up. Nobody taught me how to set up or run a business. In fact, if you look in my Audible account right now, you will find “Small Business for Dummies.” Also, I used the SCORE website and mentors. SCORE is a nonprofit company dedicated to getting small businesses off the ground. I found answers by asking the most business experienced people I know, and I researched everything.

So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the AZ MIX story. Tell us more about the business.
AZ MIX wants to provide holistic, tailored medications to treat the actual problem rather than provide simple drugs to mask the symptoms. AZ MIX makes other medications as well, but they are not going to be as harmful or addictive as most of the commercial medications prescribed currently (opioids, narcotics, etc.). AZ MIX provides individualized medication specific to each patient as well as to their problems. Have an allergy or problem taking a medication in a certain form? AZ MIX will come up with a solution. In addition to Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy, AZ MIX can make Slow Release Thyroid Supplement Capsules, Topical Pain Creams, Psoriasis and Eczema Creams, Wound and Scar medications, Anti-Aging products, Neurological Products, and of course Vet Medications (with special animal approved flavors).

AZ MIX owners believe that the body provides signs (aka symptoms) to show that something is not right. The easiest example would be having an elevated fever. What is your body telling you? Our bodies are geniuses; we have an amazing system that wants to stay in equilibrium. At AZ MIX, that is our goal. AZ MIX wants to provide medications to treat the patient, not the symptom if possible. And if we must treat the symptom, AZ MIX wants to take a targeted approach that will be less harmful to the patient. Expect the unexpected pharmacy when you get your medication from AZ MIX. Expect that your medication will be specific to your needs and individualized to you as a patient who is unexpected today in pharmacy.

What do you know now that you wish you knew when you were just starting out?
I would have started my own compounding pharmacy ten years ago.

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Image Credit:
Lindsay Jenks

Getting in touch: VoyagePhoenix is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition, please let us know here.

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