Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences was honored by the Cameroon Association of the Greater Capital District with the organization’s Community Service Award; Provost Tarun Patel accepted the award on behalf of the College.
The Community Service Award was given to the College in recognition of the work ACPHS has done in bringing pharmaceutical and clinical services to medically underserved areas of the Capital Region.
In the past two years, ACPHS has established two not-for-profit community pharmacies – one in Schenectady and another in Albany. The first pharmacy – College Hometown Pharmacy – opened in 2016 in the Hometown Health Centers clinic in Schenectady. The second pharmacy, College Parkside Pharmacy (see above photo), opened in 2017 in the Capital South Campus Center in Albany’s South End. The pharmacies are staffed primarily by ACPHS students and managed by a licensed pharmacist.
Later this year, the College will be opening a second facility in Albany’s South End called “The Collaboratory.” For its first Collaboratory-based project, the College is partnering with Trinity Alliance, a local community service organization, to help Medicaid-eligible residents improve their use of preventative health services. The Collaboratory will include a classroom where ACPHS students will take courses in public health and related topics. The classroom will also be used to host educational sessions for local residents.
The Cameroon Association of the Greater Capital District is a strong supporter of humanitarian causes, both in the West African nation of Cameroon and in the Capital Region. Beneficiaries of the group's fundraising efforts include an orphanage in Cameroon, the Ronald McDonald House in Albany, and a local food pantry.