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Physician Pharmacist Collaboration in Primary Care

Strengthening Primary Care Through Physician & PCN Pharmacist Collaboration

The role of the clinical pharmacist continues to be integrated into the Primary Care Networks (PCN) across Vancouver. This integration has focused on increasing awareness of the PCN Clinical Pharmacist role in comprehensive medication management, while also exploring what effective partnership between primary care providers and the PCN Pharmacist can look like to enhance quality of care within the primary care setting.
In October 2025, one successful partnership was featured at the Canadian Conference on Physician Health held at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver. Dr. Daniel Dodek, Family Physician at WELL Health City View Medical, and Amneet Aulakh, PCN Clinical Pharmacist, showcased their quality improvement project, “Enhancing Chronic Disease Management Through Family Physician–Pharmacist Collaboration in Primary Care”. This poster submission was especially notable as the only submission focused on pharmacist integration within primary care.
Their project explored a dyad model where the physician and pharmacist worked side-by-side to improve chronic disease management, patient education, and medication therapy optimization. The results of such a model were clear:
  1. Patients experienced more comprehensive care and expressed high satisfaction with additional support
  2. A collaborative workflow reduced administrative burden on the physician, improving overall physician well-being
  3. Seamless communication strengthened teamwork
Dr. Dodek and Amneet will continue this work through a PCN Pharmacy co-location model, offered to clinics in the Interprofessional Teams program. In this model, a PCN Pharmacist is embedded into the clinic on a regular schedule and brings their expertise directly into the clinic’s context: “We’re excited to move forward with a co-location trial at the clinic. Being on-site will allow for even closer teamwork, faster communication, and more seamless support for patients with complex needs” - Amneet Aulakh “Exploring a co-location model is the natural next step. I believe it will strengthen continuity of care, streamline decision-making, and further demonstrate the value of pharmacists as integral members of the primary care team” - Dr. Daniel Dodek Congratulations to Dr. Dodek and Amneet for a fantastic collaboration! If you would like to learn more about the ways you can work with a PCN Clinical Pharmacist, visit our website. If you have questions about the PCN Pharmacy program, please connect with your Community Network Manager.