Shoppers Drug Mart donation to support Blueprint for Pharmacy initiative

TORONTO — Shoppers Drug Mart is making a $250,000 donation to support The Blueprint for Pharmacy Implementation Strategy, a long-term initiative designed to catalyze, coordinate and facilitate the changes required to align pharmacy practice with the healthcare needs of Canadians.

Shoppers Drug Mart's donation will be designated to funding strategic research to evaluate the impact of healthcare policies on pharmacy practices.

"The expansion of pharmacy practice and implementation of government-funded pharmacy services, such as medication reviews, is a significant step forward for pharmacy," stated Domenic Pilla, president and CEO of Shoppers Drug Mart. "This research will provide further evidence of the impact that patient-centered pharmacy services have on improving health outcomes for Canadians, while at the same time easing the burden on our healthcare system."

The Blueprint for Pharmacy is a collaboration of pharmacy stakeholders, led by the Canadian Pharmacists Association and the Canadian Association of Chain Drug Stores, and supported by pharmacy organizations across Canada, working to bring about significant and meaningful change to the profession and practice of pharmacy. In 2008, the document "Vision for Pharmacy" was released, which detailed optimal drug therapy outcomes for Canadians through patient-centered care. Building on that vision, the Implementation Plan for the Blueprint for Pharmacy was developed in 2009.

"An enormous effort by all stakeholders, including Shoppers Drug Mart, has seen so much being accomplished to date," added Dennis Gorecki, chairman of the Blueprint for Pharmacy Steering Committee. "The Blueprint for Pharmacy is, however, now at the critical implementation stage, which requires essential funding to ensure the successful completion of many important projects that will help drive the evolution of pharmacy practice. We are most grateful to Shoppers Drug Mart for their leadership and for stepping up to provide continued funding to help complete these projects, and we hope that this donation will motivate other pharmacy stakeholders to also support this important initiative."