In an interview with Pharmacy Times, Niki Shah, vice president of impact innovation and activation at McKesson, discussed the company's various initiatives to support health equity through community pharmacy, announced at the 2024 McKesson ideaShare conference. These include training pharmacy technicians as community health workers and launching a website called Find Help that connects patients with resources. Shah noted that McKesson has also opened a new independent pharmacy in Avondale, Ohio, and launched a pilot project to improve access to healthcare in medically underserved areas. She explained how the pharmacy serves as an example of how future facilities can provide healthcare services and act as community hubs.
Pharmacy Times
How is McKesson supporting community pharmacies to advance health equity?
Niki Shah
McKesson's purpose is to improve health outcomes for everyone. And more than anything, part of our purpose is to address that part of inequity. Our commitment to doing that is across the enterprise and beyond. We're working to improve access to care and access to care, improve health equity in a variety of ways through different partnerships. Specifically, in community pharmacy, we've launched several initiatives around health equity specifically for Health Mart. One example is around community health workers, where we train pharmacy technicians in independent pharmacies across the United States. They're technicians, but adding the element of community health worker to their background allows them to better address the needs of patients at the point of care and have a deeper understanding of things like social determinants of health and other needs. That may not be as obvious when patients pick up their prescriptions. Another service we recently launched is Find Help. Specifically https://healthmart.findhelp.com/, which is a great resource for both pharmacists and patients. You can use Health Mart for free to find resources in your zip code or community on food, transportation, housing, anything that could be a barrier to care. Not only can pharmacists strengthen their own teams to meet the needs of patients who come to the pharmacy, but they can also support patients. Search again for free.
Key Takeaways
McKesson supports health equity through initiatives such as training pharmacy technicians as community health workers and providing a resource website for patients and pharmacists. The company launched a pilot project to open a new independent pharmacy in Avondale, Ohio, to improve access to health care in underserved communities. Pharmacies can serve as hubs within communities by providing health services, prevention, education, and addressing social determinants of health.
Pharmacy Times
What is McKesson doing to improve access to healthcare?
Niki Shah
McKesson, because of its footprint and geographic reach, has a unique ability to use impact-driven initiatives to truly support and advance the wellness of all. One example of this is the launch of a pilot initiative aimed at improving access to basic healthcare in underserved communities. In this project specifically, the way McKesson got involved was to support the opening of a new independent pharmacy to help urban areas that didn't have a storefront for pharmacy services. Not just pharmacy services, but access to general healthcare throughout that community. So after a lot of research, looking at the data, looking at where the need was and where we could really create impact, we landed on Avondale, Ohio, a community in Cincinnati. The demographics, the health risks, everything that makes up a community, the lack of access made it an ideal location for our first activation site. With McKesson's support, Dr. Emmanuel Ayanjoke became the first pharmacist for our new activation and is now the owner and operator of Alteve Community Pharmacy in Avondale.
Pharmacy Times
How can this project and pharmacies like Altev Community Pharmacy further support health equity in our communities?
Niki Shah
Pharmacists have a very unique role in the patient journey and the way we respond and react to health equity is deeply ingrained in the profession. It's what pharmacists do. Initiatives like Altev Community Pharmacy make that commitment a reality. It's another opportunity for McKesson and our partners to invest and think about different ways to continue to expand access in areas where access to not only pharmacy services but also prevention, early detection, vaccines, education, and more is limited. A person's overall health and health outcomes are multifaceted. So the pharmacy is really a trusted agent in that community. We see Altev as an example of a future hub that can be the center of all of the healthcare-related services in the community.
