The Pharmacy Guild of Australia announced the six finalists for the 2023 Guild Pharmacy of the Year with half of the finalists based in Queensland, including Livelife Pharmacy Cooroy.
The three Queensland finalists were selected from hundreds of nominations across the country and also include Thursday Island Pharmacy, and. Wholelife Pharmacy and Healthfoods Pease Street.
The Guild Pharmacy of the Year Award recognises pharmacies that are leading the way in providing innovative and optimal healthcare for members of their community.
Queensland Branch president, Chris Owen, recognised the achievements of the Queensland finalists.
“Congratulations to the three Queensland finalists. This year has been another evolutionary year in community pharmacy with Queensland leading the way on free influenza vaccinations and commencement of the North Queensland Community Pharmacy Scope of Practice Pilot,” Mr Owen said.
“Therefore, it is no surprise that Queensland is well represented in the Pharmacy of the Year finalists with community, innovation, and business management at the core of Queensland community pharmacy.”
Livelife Pharmacy Cooroy proprietor Jacquie Meyer said values were important for the pharmacy and its patients.
Those values are: laugh and enjoy the day; inspire others; fully engage; and enrich their day.
“The commitment to a strong set of values is an important foundation for the success of Livelife Pharmacy Cooroy in Queensland being a central health hub for the local and surrounding community,” Ms Meyer said.
“It’s an honour to be recognised for the work our whole team puts in each and every day. They made it through a tough period with a lot of uncertainty throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, during which they continued to step up every day to ensure the community were being cared for.
“With only six finalists across the country, it’s a wonderful achievement for the store to be able to make it to the top six.
“Thank you to everyone in our community for all of their support.”
Caitlin Davies, speaking on behalf of the Thursday Island Pharmacy ownership team of Carli Berrill and Mick and Luci Delaney, said that their community is the reason for their very existence, and their success.
“We also love to push ourselves to offer something better within our community like visiting the elderly to provide medication information and support, community information events, educational events at the primary and high schools, and the implementation of an annual TI Pharmacy iPad Science/Maths award to all schools in the region to encourage local children to invest in their education and hopefully pharmacy as a future,” Ms Davies said.
Brothers and co-proprietors of Wholelife Pharmacy and Healthfoods Pease Street, Frank and Vince Pappalardo, said the pharmacy’s current structure was a direct result of patient demand, coupled with extensive research.
“The result is that we now support our customers in achieving a balanced and individualised approach to their health and wellbeing by combining traditional pharmacy services, contemporary health services and complimentary products,” Mr Pappalardo said.
Community pharmacies can enter in one of three award categories: Excellence in Business Management; Excellence in Community Engagement; and Excellence in Professional Innovation.
The 2023 Guild Pharmacy of the Year is chosen from the three category winners and presented during the Opening Plenary at the 2023 Australian Pharmacy Professional Conference and Trade Exhibition (APP2023) on the Gold Coast on 23-26 March.
