After 36 years as a pharmacist and 17 years spent building Northgate Pharmacy into a cornerstone of the Sarnia community, Richard Kelch is ready to slow down.
His legacy and deep-rooted commitment to the Sarnia community will carry on in the capable hands of his longtime colleagues Jagjit Singh and Samantha Roman, who will now helm the business.
Kelch’s journey as a pharmacist began with school in Toronto before moving to London. “The knock on the door came with Sarnia and Big V,” he recalls. He worked at both the Northgate and Mitton Street locations before Shoppers Drug Mart acquired Big V. Richard spent a decade as a Shoppers pharmacist, but his path took an unexpected turn in 2006 when he was let go.
“I floated around for a few months,” he remembers, but fate had other plans. A space became available, and the opportunity arose to start a pharmacy in the fashion that he always felt could be done. “I wanted to focus on the patient, treat them as friends and neighbours. It all started with my mom as my first client, and it quickly grew from there.”
Since that humble beginning, Northgate Pharmacy has grown into a trusted brand, and the business has expanded into a core of three full-time pharmacists plus a large support team. Kelch says, “This team really has built something incredible, and being locally owned, we are able to provide services to the community as we identify potential needs.”
Although many view Northgate Pharmacy as a place where they get their medication, it has also become a leader in innovation. As one of the first pharmacies in the area to adopt ClinicalConnect, the pharmacist team has integrated access to medical records into the pharmacy’s workflow.
“This information helps give us the ability to validate that dosing on many medications is being done in the context of a patient’s health status,” he says, highlighting how the tool allows pharmacists to identify potential medication issues, suggest dosing adjustments, and overall collaborate more effectively with prescribers.
Another is the offering of Pharmacogenomic testing. Northgate is the only pharmacy in Sarnia offering this service whereby a patient submits a cheek swab to a laboratory to screen for gene variations that allow the pharmacists at Northgate to predict an individual’s variations in how many medications are processed. “This tool has incredible potential, especially in the treatment of many mental health conditions,” noted Kelch.
Perhaps Richard’s proudest accomplishment is the countless students he has mentored over the years. “Once upon a time, someone took me on and trained me,” he says. “I like the idea of having that mentorship. Even when students leave here, the door is always open if they need help.” To that end, Northgate Pharmacy is a clinical teaching site for the University of Waterloo and the Pharmacy Technician Program at Lambton College.
Now, as Kelch prepares to pass the torch, he couldn’t have found better successors than Jagjit Singh and Samantha Roman, who have become familiar faces at Northgate Pharmacy for many years. Both Sarnia natives, Singh and Roman bring not only extensive professional experience but also deep roots in the local community.
Singh grew up in Sarnia, first joined Northgate as a student, and then became a licensed pharmacist in 2017 after graduating from the University of Waterloo. He is passionate about patient safety and has used new technologies to improve care. “People see multiple doctors, and doctors don’t always know what medications their patients are on. It’s on the retail pharmacist to step in,” he explains. With tools like ClinicalConnect, Singh and the team can check lab results for variations that could impact safe medication dosing. This tool is now employed daily to help our pharmacists optimize treatments.
Roman’s journey with Northgate began in 2013 after completing her undergraduate education at McGill University and Pharmacy at the University of Waterloo. Over the years, she has married and now has three children. She has seen the pharmacy embrace cutting-edge technology, including robotic automation. “It’s important to note that from the beginning, we have used automation so that we can free up staff to focus on more complex patient needs. This also allows us to give staff the time to provide more detailed service and to build better relationships with our clientele,” said Roman.
“When I first started, we didn’t have this level of automation,” she says. One of the major issues that the staff deal with on a daily basis are supply chain issues and drug shortages. “Without employing these new technologies, we wouldn’t be able to go that extra mile to solve so many of our patient’s problems.”
For Roman, becoming a pharmacy owner is a dream come true. “Ownership was always an avenue I wanted to pursue,” she says. “Richard was looking to pass the torch to the next generation, and I was there waiting to receive it.”
Roman and Singh’s shared vision for Northgate Pharmacy is deeply rooted in the community. “This is a multi-generational partnership,” Roman notes, adding that her family and Singh’s family have long-standing business ties in Sarnia. “Our grandfathers each ran family businesses in the same neighbourhood, so it feels fitting that we’re continuing that tradition.”
For Kelch, the transition from owner to part-time staff pharmacist is the logical next step. “To me, it’s a legacy thing,” he says. “Having them take over—a pair of lifelong colleagues who are local and believe in the concept—feels like serendipity. I couldn’t have asked for a better outcome.”
Although stepping back from full-time work next November, Kelch isn’t ready to leave pharmacy life entirely. “I’ll be here part-time; I’m not ready to retire completely,” he says. Beyond that, he and his wife, who is also a retired pharmacist, are eager to travel. Both are avid divers and have a long list of destinations they hope to explore. “For 30+ years, getting even a week off was a stretch,” Kelch recalls. “It’s time to see what else is out there.”
As Northgate Pharmacy enters this new milestone in its history, Sarnia’s residents can rest assured that it remains in good hands. With Roman and Singh leading the way, the business will continue to grow and innovate while staying true to the foundation that it was built on: personal and friendly service every time.