In this episode of Pharmacy Podcast that provides regular interviews with Pharmacy leaders, entrepreneurs, and members of The Independent Pharmacies of Australia (IPA), host Melody Mugari, a Pharmacist and Programs and Corporate Partnerships Manager at Independent Pharmacies Australia (IPA) sits down with Sally Panton, Executive General Manager – Precision Health & Wellness at DBG Health and Director, Pantonic Health Pty Ltd. Sally shares her remarkable journey from growing up in a pharmacy-focused family to pioneering advancements in preventative healthcare, functional pathology, and point-of-care testing. She reflects on her early career at SEEK, where she developed a passion for innovation, and how that ultimately led her back to healthcare entrepreneurship. Throughout the conversation, Sally highlights the transformative impact of technology and innovation in the healthcare industry, particularly in making diagnostics more accessible and efficient.
Topics Covered
- Sally Panton’s Career Journey
- Bringing Rapid Antigen Tests to Australia
- Government and Industry Advocacy
- Scaling Supply Chains Amidst the Pandemic
- The Role of Pharmacies in Preventative Healthcare
- Policy and Funding Challenges
- Advancements in Precision Health
- Lessons in Leadership and Business
- Sally’s Vision for Healthcare
Key Quotes (Time Stamps)
- “I was from a pharmacy background. So, I grew up in health. And dad had pharmacies and the medical clinic next door, which we still have today on the Mornington Peninsula. So, it was always around medicine, patients, and the business side of health care from a very young age.” (5:05 – 5:23)
- “I actually was fortunate enough to get a really amazing job at SEEK, which is where so much innovation was happening. So, I was working for Paul and Andrew Bassat, the founders, and that really gave me this deep love for innovation, seeing how new ideas could truly change industries.” (5:48 – 6:10)
- “No one knew what a rapid antigen test was. Some people had heard of it. Even doctors didn’t know what it was. I think some people had heard of antibody tests that show if you had had a virus, but not these acute diagnostics. So, that was frustrating because it made our journey really hard in the early days because we just got dismissed by anyone. They didn’t understand the value of the technology.” (11:07 – 11:35)
- “Then, we got these ridiculously large orders from Australian government departments, but also the New Zealand Ministry of Health, which trumped every other order. They loved our tests because they were really fast, they were manufactured in the US, and they were really accurate and so they ordered approximately, I think, it was, 50 million tests and they needed them ASAP.” (18:33 – 18:59)
- “It was touch and go so many times where it wasn’t just like take the order and everyone’s happy. It was like delivering all of the outcomes. That was a huge undertaking for the entire team and the government as well. We ended up going to New Zealand to have a party with the Ministry of Health over there at the end of it and sang karaoke. It was a fun night because we were all in it together and we’re just like, we’ve done it, we’ve closed out this program, which is an amazing memory now that I think of it.” (27:03 – 27:38)
- “Working for dad and knowing the customer journey in pharmacy from 20 years ago—it has really helped me integrate well into what I’m doing now.” (29:02 – 29:13)
- “With point of care testing coming into pharmacy, it will expand so many opportunities for pharmacists to talk to their patients about other health conditions, expand the scope.” (31:13 – 31:25)
- “Testing is so important but it’s not mainstream yet. You go to get your standard labs from your GP and they miss so much that they could be testing for. So, that’s where the future, I believe, in precision health will be DNA testing, because you can learn so much about the predispositions to medication and other things like food and fitness, but also biometric testing from blood to understand actual pathology outcomes. So, that’s going to be something that we’re looking forward to working on.” (36:07 – 36:45)
- “You just have to look at the cost of sickness on the health care system. And if we are doing some testing to prevent that, it really should be covered from the federal health budget or a combination of federal and state budgets so that people don’t ever have a barrier to staying well.” (38:06 – 38:27)
Important Time Stamps
- Pharmacy, Innovation & Passion: Sally Panton’s Story (3:08 – 9:29)
- How Two Sisters Brought COVID Rapid Tests to Australia (9:31 – 16:12)
- From Footy Teams to 50 Million Tests – A COVID-19 Breakthrough (16:13 – 22:46)
- How Sally Panton Hustled to Bring RATs to Australia—Against All Odds! (22:53 – 27:59)
- From Family Pharmacy to Precision Health: Sally Panton’s Journey (28:18 – 37:36)
- The Next Big Shift in Healthcare: Test, Treat, Thrive! (37:37 – 43:23)
- The Future of Health: Personalized Wellness at Your Fingertips! (43:24 – 47:06)
- Sally Panton’s 24-Year-Old Self Would Love This Advice! (47:07 – 50:24)
Useful Links
Independent Pharmacies Australia (IPA) | LinkedIn
Independent Pharmacies Australia (IPA) | Website
Chemist Discount Centre (CDC) | Website
