Dr. Asha Pai Bohannon: Empowering Patients and Pharmacists Through Holistic, Individualized Care and Advocacy
Founder and CEO of PAI Wellness Group, LLC
Diabetes is a chronic illness that affects millions of people worldwide, and its management is crucial to prevent complications such as heart disease, kidney disease, and nerve damage. While medications are an important part of diabetes management, a holistic approach that considers lifestyle factors and individualized care can lead to better outcomes. Dr. Asha Pai Bohannon, a certified diabetes care and education specialist and personal trainer, has developed a unique 7 Steps to H.A.R.M.O.N.Y.™ approach that provides a 360-degree holistic, individualized approach to helping patients manage their health and wellness, using as few medications as possible.
Dr. Asha’s passion for diabetes management and patient advocacy is rooted in her personal experiences with her own family’s struggles with the disease. Growing up, Dr. Asha witnessed firsthand the impact that diabetes can have on a person’s life and the lives of their loved ones. Driven by her mother’s struggle with the mismanagement of the healthcare system and a lack of appropriate information for her diabetes diagnosis, Dr. Asha took it upon herself to assist her mother in treating and managing the condition. This personal experience ignited a passion within her to prioritize patient wellness and move beyond the reliance on medication as the primary treatment option. With that inspiration, she pursued a career in healthcare, and she ultimately became a pharmacist specializing in diabetes management.
However, after working in the retail pharmacy industry for many years, Dr. Asha began to experience job burnout and a decline in her own health. She realized that the traditional approach to healthcare was not as effective as she had hoped, and she felt like she was “feeding people’s illnesses instead of helping them get or stay well.” This realization led her to develop her unique 7 Steps to H.A.R.M.O.N.Y.™ approach, which focuses on patient advocacy and individualized care.
With over two decades of experience in retail pharmacy, Dr. Asha established her own independent holistic wellness practice, PAI Wellness Group, LLC, where she empowers patients to advocate for themselves and receive accurate information about their illnesses. Her mission is to guide patients toward comprehensive wellness, extending beyond prescription medication.
PAI Wellness Group is a holistic wellness practice that emphasizes patient advocacy and individualized care. The acronym “PAI” stands for Patient Advocacy Initiative, reflecting Dr. Asha’s passion for empowering patients to take control of their health and well-being. PAI Wellness Group offers a 360-degree approach to patient care, with a focus on reducing the need for medication and promoting lifestyle changes that optimize health outcomes. Dr. Asha’s unique 7 Steps to H.A.R.M.O.N.Y.™ approach guides patients towards comprehensive wellness, taking into account factors such as stress reduction, nutrition counseling, and regular check-ups.
The acronym H.A.R.M.O.N.Y. stands for Health History and Comprehensive Health Assessment, Analyze Medication and Supplement profiles and labs, Realize Your Journey Is Unique to You, Maximizing Your Physical, Opportunities for Internal Growth, Nurture Your Stress Relief, and You have the P.O.W.E.R. This approach includes gathering a comprehensive health history, analyzing blood work, lab tests, and medications and supplements, providing education about proper nutrition, creating a customized food and physical exercise plan, exploring factors that affect health and wellness, and empowering patients to make lasting changes in their life.
The PAI Wellness Group team provides services for prediabetes and type-2 diabetes management, as well as a range of holistic wellness offerings. Patients can consult with Dr. Asha and her team for guidance and support, regardless of their specific medical conditions. Patients are given the power to change their lives for the better, with a focus on setting goals, taking action, and rewarding progress along the way.
In addition to patient care, PAI Wellness Group supports pharmacists in creating their own wellness practices through business consulting and mentorship. Dr. Asha aims to help pharmacists overcome burnout and make a more significant impact in the healthcare industry by sharing her knowledge and expertise. To create a successful and thriving business, Dr. Asha partners with her husband, who has an MBA focused on entrepreneurship and a background in creating professional services for large fortune 50 companies. Together, they bring their expertise to create the IMPACT Pharmacist™ and DiabetesBusters Center of Excellenceprogram, which helps pharmacists establish their own wellness practices.
The program provides the mindset, business, marketing, and strategy tools and knowledge necessary to launch a wellness practice that can be run on your own terms. Dr. Asha (PharmD) and Eric Bohannon (MBA) bring their extensive experience and expertise to the program, having helped numerous pharmacists create and launch their own businesses and wellness practices across the United States. Dr. Asha has over 20 years of experience in retail pharmacy and over 10 years of experience in sales and entrepreneurship, while Eric has over 15 years of experience in creating and launching multiple million-dollar service-based businesses.
In the program, pharmacists will learn the secrets of successful businesses and the reasons behind their failures. They will gain insights on what is holding them back from starting their own wellness practice and how to beat the competition. The program will also cover topics such as finding the right target market and getting paid what you are worth. The Center of Excellence programs are a comprehensive and holistic approach to building a wellness practice that aligns with your passions and provides fulfillment. With the clinical knowledge and business expertise of Dr. Asha and Eric Bohannon, pharmacists can overcome their fears and start their own wellness practice.
Overall, PAI Wellness Group is committed to empowering patients and practitioners alike through its patient advocacy and holistic wellness approach. Dr. Asha’s dedication to individualized care and patient education is at the heart of the practice’s mission, making it a valuable resource for anyone seeking to achieve comprehensive wellness.
Dr. Asha is motivated by her philosophy of making a positive impact on as many lives as possible and bringing about change in the healthcare system. She channels this drive through various approaches, including writing books such as “To Medicate or Not? That is The Question” and “IMPACT Pharmacist.” Dr. Asha is fond of acronyms and analogies, using them in her books to explore different aspects of healthcare. For example, “IMPACT Pharmacist” uses the analogy of building a house, stressing the importance of laying a strong foundation before constructing the roof. Dr. Asha believes in starting with foundational elements to create a successful, thriving, and impactful business involving clients or patients.
As a pharmacist, Dr. Asha understands the challenge of getting stuck in analysis paralysis, where one is unsure of their initial or subsequent steps. Therefore, she advises other pharmacists who are keen on establishing their wellness practices to seek guidance from someone experienced in the field. According to Dr. Asha, “Find somebody, and I would love to be that somebody, but find somebody to guide you, listen to you, and show you the right way to begin that process. Because all you’re going to do is spin your wheels until you get that guidance.”
Dr. Asha’s approach has proven successful for many of her patients, who have achieved better glycemic control, reduced the number of medications they take, and improved their overall quality of life. In addition to her work with patients, Dr. Asha is also passionate about coaching and mentoring other pharmacists to start their own wellness practices, so they too can make a difference in the lives of their patients. Through her work and dedication to patient advocacy, Dr. Asha is making a significant impact in the healthcare industry, one patient and one pharmacist at a time.
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