Recognizing its role as the provincial pharmacy regulator and the role that pharmacy professionals can play in addressing healthcare disparities, the College is well positioned to help drive positive change in collaboration with the profession to support the delivery of more equitable healthcare in Ontario.
Commitment Statement
“The Ontario College of Pharmacists recognizes the important role we play as an employer and as a regulator that serves and protects the public interest to help build a better health system and society.
We commit to promoting equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) with our Board and staff, in our regulatory approach and philosophy, with the profession and with pharmacy patients. We aim to enhance cultural safety including Indigenous cultural competence in an effort to minimize systemic inequities, in collaboration with registrants and stakeholders, in order to contribute to the creation of an inclusive and equitable environment for all.
As we do, we will strive to listen, reflect, learn and take actions and will continue to communicate our progress along this journey.”
What EDI Means
To help recognize how equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) can support the delivery of safe and equitable pharmacy care in Ontario and enhance the College’s regulatory work, it is important to understand what EDI means.
Equity: is recognizing differences and using that understanding to achieve fairness by removing obstacles to ensure everyone has comparable prospects to achieve their goals. It is not just about giving everyone the same chance but instead ensuring everyone has access to what they need to succeed. The pursuit of equity involves identifying and removing systemic barriers.
Diversity: is about inclusive representation reflected in the mosaic of our communities. It is the celebration of difference. Diversity includes such factors as age, race, ethnicity, physical and intellectual ability, religion, sexual orientation, sex, gender identity and expression, educational background, and expertise. Diversity inspires acceptance and embraces the enrichment that differences offer, while allowing for the mixing and evolving of cultures and values.
Inclusion: is having the ability and opportunity to work collaboratively in an authentic way where everyone is respected and has the ability to express their ideas with confidence and without fear of reprisal. This means appreciating unique differences in a way that demonstrates respect and embraces differences as positive contributions to our work.
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