Ontario responded by expanding pharmacist authority in 2023 and 2024, allowing them to assess and prescribe for more than 19 minor ailments, including UTIs, pink eye, acne, and skin rashes. No appointment needed.

But even before that policy shift, Black communities had already been leaning on pharmacists. They fill critical gaps in managing chronic conditions like diabetes and hypertension. They catch dangerous drug interactions. They show up when the healthcare system doesn't. And right now, there aren't nearly enough Black pharmacists doing that work.

Nneka Ezurike is one of the people trying to change that.

She owns four Shoppers Drug Mart franchises in Toronto. She co-founded the Black Pharmacy Professionals of Canada (BPPC). And she's doing it all because she lived the experience of being the only one in the room and decided she wasn't willing to let the next generation feel that same isolation.

Ezurike didn't set out to build an empire. She moved to Ontario for a three-month internship and quickly recognized what pharmacists could mean to a community. When the franchise owner at her location decided to move on, she saw her opening.

"At the time I had no prospects of being a pharmacy owner," she shares. "I was focused on settling in a new province and starting my career as a staff pharmacist. I am always open to opportunities that will challenge me, expand my knowledge and skill set and help me grow personally and professionally and this has led me on a path that I would never have imagined for myself."

She calls that first leap both frightening and exciting. Fifteen years later, it has compounded into something much larger. "Each step of that journey has required learning, adaptability, and strong partnerships with incredible teams. What continues to inspire me is the ability to serve my community, lead, and help create space for others coming behind me. What started as an unexpected opportunity ended up becoming a career that allowed me to combine science, patient relationships, and community leadership."

Ezurike is clear-eyed about what's missing in the profession. She saw it when she was a student, and she sees it now. No one who looked like her was in leadership. The rooms she entered, she often entered alone.

"There were moments where I had to navigate spaces where I was the only one in the room," she says. "Those experiences also reinforced my commitment to open doors for others. Representation matters because it expands what people believe is possible."

Black Canadians already face worse health outcomes driven by systemic racism and unequal access to care. When the pharmacist behind the counter reflects the community walking through the door, people engage. Patients actually show up.

"Black Canadians face disproportionately poorer health outcomes due to systemic barriers, including racism and unequal access to care," Ezurike explains. "Greater representation within the pharmacy profession can help improve culturally appropriate care, strengthen communication, and support better patient outcomes. Representation also plays a key role in rebuilding trust. Historical and ongoing discrimination has contributed to skepticism toward the healthcare system among some Black communities. Pharmacists who reflect the communities they serve can help improve patient engagement and willingness to seek care."

She adds that diversity helps address bias in clinical decision-making, and a more culturally competent system produces better outcomes across the board.

The BPPC was born from that understanding. Black pharmacy professionals were scattered across the country, working in isolation with no national platform, no pipeline for students, no advocacy body. Ezurike and her co-founders built one.

"The Black population in Canada continues to grow with each census," she says. "The pharmacy profession should reflect the community it serves. It is also vital that pharmacists and other healthcare professionals understand the health disparities that Black Canadians experience as a result of anti-Black racism and be positioned to provide culturally sensitive care."

The personal dimension is just as powerful as the systemic one. Ezurike had no mentor when she needed one. She navigated her career largely on her own. That's exactly why she's committed to being the presence she never had.

"Studies have shown that increasing the diversity of healthcare professionals has been associated with increased access to care and better outcomes not only for underserved minorities, but the population as a whole."

Since launching in November 2023, BPPC has grown to nearly 200 members nationwide, including licensed pharmacists, retired professionals, internationally trained graduates, technicians, assistants, and students. The organization is building out a membership tier for non-Black allies as well.

In 2025, BPPC launched its inaugural mentorship program, pairing 30 mentors with 30 mentees. A second cohort is expected later this year. Their inaugural Excellence Summit, held February 2025 at the University of Waterloo School of Pharmacy under the theme "Cultivating Leaders & Elevating Excellence," brought together professionals, students, researchers, and healthcare leaders committed to advancing equity in pharmacy. The second summit in 2026 was also a success.

The work is compounding, just like Ezurike's career. One franchise became four. One conversation became a national organization. One woman who once stood alone in rooms full of people is now making sure no one else has to.