Kristi Phelps of Gautier knew at an early age what she would do for her career.
As a child growing up in Pascagoula, Phelps always knew that she would be a pharmacist. She had even written about that goal in a journal in the third grade. This year she will celebrate 30 years in the profession.
“I wanted to work in the medical field and my brother-in-law, who was like a dad to me, was a pharmacist. It was very instrumental in my decision,” Phelps said.
After graduating from Auburn University in 1996 with a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy, Phelps began working for Sav-Rex Pharmacy. She also worked at St. Dominic & Institutional Pharmacy in Jackson, and then Fred’s after they bought Sav-Rex. She has been at Burnham Drugs in Vancleave, MS, for the past ten years.
Her job responsibilities include filling prescriptions, checking for any drug reactions, counseling patients, recommending OTC products and giving immunizations. She thoroughly enjoys the daily duties, especially the interactions with her customers.
“I absolutely love helping people. Getting to know my customers and to love them as a family is a blessing to me.”
Unfortunately, she admits her job can be challenging at times.
“It’s getting harder to do my job like I love to do it because of insurance companies. It seems like we have to jump through hoops to get medicines approved. And reimbursement rates for independent pharmacies have declined significantly.”
There’s a saying within the pharmacy community that “pharmacy is a work of heart.” For Phelps, that belief guides her approach every day. To her, pharmacy is about more than filling prescriptions—it’s about caring for people. Each customer represents a life, a family, and a story, and their well-being is something she takes personally.
When not working, Phelps spends her time running, enjoying the outdoors, cooking and visiting with family, especially her children Alexis, TW and Evan, and grandchildren Milissa and Jackson, and special friend Jerry.
