Two years ago around this time, PharmAspire was still in its 6-month infancy. Writing was, and continues to be a salve that helps to both allay negativity and create positivity wherever it may be found. Two years ago around this time, a tragic event occurred that affected me in an unexpected way.

The loss of Karen Zed, a well-respected community pharmacist in the south-end of Halifax and mentor to countless pharmacy students and international pharmacy graduates, impacted a large section of the local pharmacy community. She had been working less than five days prior, and was telling her staff that she expected to be back helping her patients less than 36-hours before the news arrived. The shock was real, and the aftershock was felt for quite some time: long-standing pharmacy patients asked for her for many months after her passing, her university and college involvement was sorely missed, and colleagues from a four-decade career silently mourned a loss of a reliable friend.

I was fortunate to have been her manager for more than 5 years, and although I knew very little of her personally, I had the utmost respect for her career, and her approach to patient care. When I initially wrote the blog post in Sept 2013, it was a reflection on my experiences with her, and how I had lost contact in the previous year. What I didn’t expect was the response to the post. It was the first time I realized how close-knit our pharmacy community truly is. It is still the most-viewed piece I have ever written. She touched so many lives.

The alumni really wanted to honour her contributions and received support to fund an award in her name. The Karen Zed – Spirit of Community Pharmacy Award was summarized on page 2 of our pharmacy newsletter, the DUCPAD Dispatch. The goal was to recognize students who share Karen’s passion for community pharmacy and contribute to a learning environment while on structured clinical rotations. Within the past year, the fund has steadily grown but at the time of this writing, it has not quite reached a level to be a sustainable award. There is hope that we will reach the threshold and present this award at the end of this school year. If you would like to contribute, I encourage you to click the following link:

Http://alumniapps.dal.ca/giving/giving.php

By selecting ‘Health Professions’ in the drop-down menu below ‘Select a designation by faculty’, the College of Pharmacy will auto-populate in the field below. Among the worthy causes listed in the final drop-down menu, Karen’s award is on the bottom.

I believe in the creation of this award and have made my own donation. Community pharmacy is such an important part of the healthcare system and it’s nice to recognize students who are hungry to learn and enjoy helping patients with their medication needs. This award promotes the values we share and ensures the spirit of a dear colleague lives on.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency, employer or affiliation.