Panacea Pharmacy English Page
Welcome to Panacea Pharmacy
We are locally owned pharmacy dedicated to the well-being of you and your family. We can handle prescriptions from any medical institution in our country. Panacea pharmacy is located in the downtown of Chino city near Tsuruya chino store and Aigle Heart & Care Clinic, close to the Yatsugatake mountain resort and the Tateshina plateau. Feel free to drop by English-speaking staffs are available.
Yatsugatake Mountain in early summer
Photographed by H. Kobayashi
Location: 15-60-8 Honmachi east, Chino city, Nagano 391-0003, Japan
Phone: 0266-78-4170
FAX: 0266-78-4180
E-mail: administrator@panaceapharmacy.net
Business hour: Weekdays 8:40-12:40 15:10-18:10
Thursday Saturdays 8:40-12:40
Regular closing day: Thursday's and Saturday’s afternoon, Sundays, Holidays
Paying for your medicines:
For your convenience, our pharmacy offer several options for settling your account. We accept cash (Japanese Yen), electronic payments, and major credit cards as payment for pharmacy services:
VISA, Master, JCB, AMEX, Diners
RakutenPay, Paypay, iD, QuicPay, nanaco, WAON, Suica, ICOCA, TOICA, PASMO
Prescription medicine
A paper which the doctor has written information about the medicines you need is called a “prescription”.
After seeing a doctor, you will receive your prescription, if needed. Take the prescription to our pharmacy and get it filled.
In Japan, the prescription you receive from your doctor is valid for only 4 days, so please go to any prescription pharmacy outside of the hospital/clinic and have it filled within 4 days.
In order to get the medicine at a pharmacy, you will be asked to show your health insurance card, medication record, and Medical Expense Subsidy Certificates, if you have any.
You will receive your medicine, your medication record with a sticker showing the current prescription, a medicine information sheet, and a receipt and details about the prescription. Please keep the receipts for your records. In some cases, the cost of the medication can be claimed as a tax deduction for medical expenses.
What you need to know about prescription medicines in Japan
There are two primary things to know about prescription medicines in Japan.
The first thing is that while many prescription medicines are available in Japan, they may not be exactly the same formulas as you have been using back home. While your doctor may prescribe a medication for you to meet your ailments, it may not provide the same relief as you'd expect. You should consult with your doctor about the specific effects and desired outcome of the medication prescribed if you have any questions or concerns.
The second thing is that in many cases, traditional herbal remedies, also known in Japanese as kampo, may be prescribed in addition to or instead of prescription medicines. This is not to say that the Japanese medical community doesn't believe in modern medicine, but rather that the traditional remedies still retain a great deal of respect even today. Medicinal herbs are regulated just like medicines so you can be confident of their quality if prescribed by your doctor. One thing to note is to only take these regulated medicinal herbs under the care of a doctor. Some of the herbs can be dangerous in the wrong doses so please don't assume it's harmless just because it's referred to as an herb.
Generic medicine
Prescription medicines are divided into two types: the original, brand-name medicine and a generic medicine. While brand-name medicines are researched, developed, and marketed at great cost and time, generic medicines are manufactured and marketed by pharmaceutical companies other than the developer after the patent for the manufacturing of the original medicine has expired. Generic medicines have different product names from brand-name medicine, but are approved by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) as having the same active ingredients and efficacy. That is why most generic medicines are less expensive.
Unless the prescription was made with a brand name and the prescribing doctor has indicated that substitution of a generic medicine is unacceptable, you will receive a generic medicine, which will lower the cost.
l Our pharmacy are collaboration with Aigle Heart & Care Clinic.
l We also accept prescriptions for foreign travelers.