Vaccines and Vigilance

At the awards ceremony: Ramon Goomber, CFP Board member and GSK representative, Sophie Park, Rexall, Veneta Anand O’Garro, Neighbourly Pharmacy, and Linda Prytula, CFP Executive Director.

Vaccines and Vigilance

Pharmacists have long served as trusted protectors of community health. The 2025 winners of the Canadian Foundation for Pharmacy’s Innovation in Vaccines Services Award, sponsored by GSK, prove just how vital their role has become. Whether it’s safeguarding the population at large or focusing on diverse communities, these innovators are ensuring that vaccines and preventative care reach people where they live and work.

Originally profiled in CFP’s 2025 Changing Face of Pharmacy report, both award-winning teams highlight the commitment of pharmacies to keep Canadians safe and healthy. “By recognizing their leadership, innovation and compassion, we’re not only celebrating individual achievements but also reinforcing the critical role pharmacy plays in protecting our communities,” says Linda Prytula, Executive Director of CFP.

Individual pharmacist/pharmacy team

The pharmacy runs vaccine clinics at downtown offices and university campuses too. “This whole idea came about because we wanted to initiate more vaccinations outside of our pharmacy walls,” notes Park. “Our outreach has significantly increased vaccination coverage in targeted populations.”

To make their vaccine program sustainable long-term, Park and Abdulaziz have integrated new technology and changed pharmacy workflow. From pre-registration platforms and automated reminders to portable refrigeration units that ensure vaccine integrity on the move, the team has crafted a scalable system that can serve hundreds of people across multiple sites without compromising safety or quality.

To raise awareness about the vaccine clinics, the duo collaborates with HR departments, event coordinators and student unions to distribute targeted emails, posters and digital booking links. “Our team also conducts post-clinic follow-up surveys to monitor outcomes and improve services,” says Park. “These integrated systems enable us to scale clinic operations across multiple locations— including hotels, offices, universities, police and fire stations—all while maintaining high safety and improving quality standards.”

Going forward the goal is to continue expanding the number of clinics to more workplaces, community organizations and educational institutions, focusing on underserved and high-risk populations.

“Strengthening collaborations with public health agencies and healthcare providers is our priority to align efforts and optimize community protection,” says Park, adding that the pharmacy was recently designated as a yellow fever vaccine clinic. “Ultimately, we strive to be a trusted leader in immunization, reducing vaccine-preventable diseases and promoting wellness throughout all of Vancouver.”

As one judge noted, this initiative stands out for its “breadth of outreach” and “meaningful leadership in non-publicly funded vaccine delivery.”

Chain/banner initiative

Neighbourly Pharmacy is proving that innovation in vaccine delivery can be a coordinated effort in hundreds of pharmacies and across provincial borders. Over a 12-week period, pharmacy teams in close to 300 locations across the country administered more than 4,300 adult immunizations, prioritizing protection against RSV, HPV, pneumococcal disease and shingles (the latter proved most popular).

Developed by Neighbourly’s clinical care and patient experience team, the Adult Immunization Initiative used targeted education and workflow optimization to seamlessly integrate vaccine services across its network of pharmacies. Each received a full suite of resources, including clinical training webinars, patient-facing posters, bag-stuffers and handouts, consent forms, reference guides and even branded t-shirts to spark patient conversation and raise awareness.

Education materials tailored to pharmacy technicians and assistants helped them initiate conversations with patients about the shingles vaccines and refer to pharmacists as needed. Neighbourly’s team also developed a request form to send to physicians and nurse practitioners in provinces where pharmacists can’t initiate prescriptions.

“This integrated approach ensured that both patients and pharmacy teams were informed, engaged and aligned, resulting in increased vaccine uptake and stronger community health outcomes,” noted Neighbourly Pharmacy in its nomination. “This initiative not only improved patient outcomes but also demonstrated the power of strategic, disease-specific efforts in community pharmacy.”

In addition, the clinical care team organized on-site vaccination clinics for residents of continuing care homes and senior supportive living homes in the Calgary area.

Beyond the numbers, the campaign underscored the importance of patient trust and relationship-building in vaccine delivery. By creating a supportive environment where patients felt comfortable discussing their concerns, pharmacy teams helped address vaccine hesitancy and encourage informed decision-making.

With 70% of its pharmacies in rural and remote areas in Canada, where they are often the only regular healthcare provider in the community, Mann says the goal is to continue making positive impacts in patient care through initiatives like this, allowing pharmacists to practice to full scope. “Our continued focus has persisted even to this day where we continue to vaccinate and celebrate the lives touched by our pharmacy teams.”

This article is reprinted from CFP’s 2025 Changing Face of Pharmacy report, mailed to more than 14,000 community pharmacies in Canada in November 2025. A pdf version is also available.