APhA Foundation announces 2026-2027 Incentive Grant and Quality Improvement Grant recipients
WASHINGTON, Nov. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Pharmacists Association Foundation is pleased to announce the 2026–2027 recipients of the Incentive Grants for Practitioner Innovation in Pharmaceutical Care and the Improving Immunization Implementation Through Quality Improvement grants.
A total of 50 pharmacists and student pharmacists from across the country were awarded seed money to implement or support an existing innovative patient care service within their pharmacy practice.
The Incentive Grants for Practitioner Innovation in Pharmaceutical Care is the APhA Foundation's longest-running program. Supported by the Community Pharmacy Foundation (CPF) and other partners, these grants have funded over 800 pharmacy-based projects, improving health outcomes for thousands of patients across the country. Focus areas for this year's 47 Incentive Grants projects include test-and-treat services, diabetes management, primary care, pharmacy access, and more.
Three sites received funding through the Improving Immunization Implementation through Quality Improvement grants, made possible through an independent educational grant from Merck & Co. The goal of this initiative is to equip pharmacy residents with practical guidelines, best practices, and actionable ideas for designing and completing quality improvement projects focused on immunization workflow.
"We are sincerely grateful to our partners, Merck, CPF, and our donors, for continuing this important program," said Benjamin Bluml, RPh, APhA Foundation executive director and senior vice president of research and innovation. "These projects will continue to make waves in pharmacy practice models long after completion."
Recipients are listed below.
Incentive Grants for Practitioner Innovation in Pharmaceutical Care:
Recipient name | Practice site(s) | Project title | City, state |
*Kunal Amin | NEOvations Pharmacy Services | NEO-VAX Connect - Closing Lifespan Immunization Gaps Through Integrated Care, Pharmacy Outreach, and Community Delivery | Rootstown, OH |
Tinarena Awaradia | Western University of Health Sciences, College of Pharmacy and Desert Oasis Healthcare | A Ten-Year Evaluation of a Pharmacist-Run Hepatitis C Clinic Serving an Underserved Desert Community | Pomona/Palm Springs, CA |
Lauren Blanco | Family Health Services | Clinical Pharmacy–Led FIB-4 Risk Stratification in Patients with Diabetes in a Rural FQHC: A Descriptive Evaluation of Screening, Risk Categorization, and Clinical Follow-Up | Greenville, OH |
Kennedy Broussard | University of Mississippi School of Pharmacy | Impact of Maximum Allowable Cost (MAC) Appeals on Gross Margin and Reimbursement Outcomes in an Independent Community Pharmacy | Jackson, MS |
Roseanne Candelaria | University Medical Center of El Paso | Evaluation and Implementation of an Interprofessional Diabetes Transitional Care Management Workflow in a Spanish-Speaking, Medically Underserved Population Along the US-Mexico Border | El Paso, TX |
Marielle Carter | West Virginia University and Kroger Health | Evaluating the Impact of Structured Interviewing by Using Motivational Interviewing Techniques on Weight Change Among Older Adults Using GLP-1 Agonists | Morgantown, WV |
Tatiana Chu | Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences | Assessing the Effectiveness of a Health Literacy - Tailored Community Pharmacist Counseling Program on Hypertension and Medication Knowledge Retention: A Pre-Post Study | Boston, MA |
Taylor Dabney | South College School of Pharmacy | Evaluation of Glycemic Outcomes Following Pharmacist-Led Diabetes Management in Adults with Type 2 Diabetes | Knoxville, TN |
Mattewos Daniel | UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy and In Clinic Rx | Clinical and Financial Impact of Pharmacist-Managed Remote Monitoring for Hypertension | Benson, NC |
Katelyn Davis | University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy | Learning Collaboratives as an Implementation Strategy for Enhanced Patient Care Services in Community Pharmacies | Pittsburgh, PA |
Maurine De la Paz | HealthLinc | Comparing Retention Rates Between Extended-Release Subcutaneous and Sublingual Buprenorphine-Naloxone at a Federally Qualified Health Center | Valparaiso, IN |
Elizabeth Dietz | Kroger Health | Implementation of a pharmacist-led GIP/GLP-1 Care Management | Cincinnati, OH |
Clint Doty | Albertsons Companies and Idaho State University College of Pharmacy | Characterizing Community Pharmacist-Led Prescribing Services Provided in Idaho, Colorado, and Montana | Boise, ID |
Mary Dzhuryan | USC Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences | Assessing Provider Awareness, Knowledge, and Barriers to Referral for USC Pharmacy Vaping Cessation Program | Los Angeles, CA |
Serena Fasola | ACME Pharmacy and Albertsons Companies | Association Between Targeted Pharmacy Immunization Interventions and Pneumococcal Vaccine Administration | Bala Cynwyd, PA |
Maxwell Fleming | CVS Health | Characteristic of Pharmacist-Prescriber Health Information Exchanges in a Community Pharmacy Setting | Lafayette, IN |
Ellie Flynn | UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy and Moose Pharmacy | Assessing Barriers to Community Pharmacy Implementation of Long-Acting Injectable Buprenorphine | Concord, NC |
Melanie Galima | Albertsons Companies | Assessing Patient Interest in Longer-Form Appointments at Their Local Community Pharmacy | Fullerton, CA |
Ramey Hensley | University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy and PrimaryPlus | Pharmacist Involvement in Medicare Annual Wellness Visits Across Kentucky Federally Qualified Health Centers | Lexington/Morehead, KY |
Reiley Hertlein | Health Mart | Impact of Specific Workflow and Technology-Related Factors on Completion of Comprehensive Medication Review Opportunities in Independent Community Pharmacies | Irving, TX |
Mariam Hussain | UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy and Walgreens | Enhancing Experiential Learning Through a Standardized Community Pharmacy Clinical Education Toolkit | Durham, NC |
Soo Kang | Kroger Health and Virginia Commonwealth University | Enhancing Community Access Through Pharmacist Delivered Preventive Care: A Quality Improvement Evaluation of a National Grocery Chain Mobile Health Outreach Program | Henrico, VA |
Shelby Kim | Albertsons Companies and University of California, Irvine | Patterns of Inappropriate SABA Inhaler Use: Opportunities for Community Pharmacist Intervention in Promoting Guideline-Based Asthma Management | Fullerton, CA |
Kamryn Koller | UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy and Cape Fear Clinic | Transforming Diabetes Care Through an Opt-Out Continuous Glucose Monitoring Program: A Prospective Evaluation | Wilmington, NC |
Klaudia Kruczak | Jewel Osco | Barriers to Prior Authorization Resolution Among Medicare Beneficiaries Using the Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Bridge Program | Chicago, IL |
Camille Kugler | HealthLinc | Prescription Drug Substitutions Performed Under a Collaborative Drug Therapy Management Agreement in a Federally Qualified Health Center | Valparaiso, IN |
Hyejun Lee | USC Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences | Expanding Community Pharmacist-Led Asthma Care: A Telephone Outreach Intervention to Improve Asthma Control in Adults | Omaha, NE |
Christina Lo | UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy and In Clinic Rx | Evaluating a Pharmacist-Led Esketamine Administration Service | Benson, NC |
Kristen Lyons | Purdue University Pharmacy | Impact of Antibiotic Prescribing Practices on Follow-Up Visits and Repeat Antibiotics in a College Health Setting | West Lafayette, IN |
Kami McDonald | Ohio Northern University HealthWise | Decreasing Primary Care Gaps for Rural Medicaid Patients | Ada, OH |
Carla Medina-Gil | University of Colorado Denver | Identifying Barriers and Facilitators to the Implementation of ePrescribing in Community Pharmacies | Aurora, CO |
Autaria F. Morgan | Premise Health/ Southwire – Wiggins Family Medical Center and Pharmacy | Longitudinal Changes in Liver Fibrosis Risk Among Adults with Type 2 Diabetes Participating in a Pharmacist-Led Diabetes Management Program | Carrollton, GA |
Emma Munson | UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy and Companion Pharmacy | Evaluation of a Pharmacist-Led Medication Review Service in Companion Animal Polypharmacy | Raleigh, NC |
Patricia Ndifor Nformi | University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Pharmacy and Kroger Health | Community Pharmacist-led Medication Optimization in Patients on GLP-1 Receptor Agonist Therapy | Nashville, TN |
Cody Nguyen | HealthNet, Inc. | Provider Perceptions of the Impact of Pharmacist Interventions in Co-Visits on Patient Care | Indianapolis, IN |
Megan Pointer | Walgreens | The PrEPARE Study: Pharmacy Partnerships for Equitable HIV Prevention, Access, Reach, and Engagement | St. Louis, MO |
Angelic Puglisi | Smith's Food and Drug Centers | From Rotation to Career: A Structured Training and Development Program to Strengthen the Community Pharmacy Workforce Pipeline | Las Vegas, NV |
*Graciela Rivera-Pena | CVS Pharmacy/LECOM | Overcoming HPV Vaccine Myths: A Student-Pharmacist-Led Counseling and Outreach Initiative for Parents and Unvaccinated Adults | Kissimmee, FL |
Abrianna Singleton | Ohio Northern University and HealthWise | Pharmacist-driven Mobile Diabetes Care in Medicaid Patients with A1C Above 9% | Ada, OH |
Isabella Smith | Walgreens Specialty Pharmacy | Pharmacist-Driven Education Service on Skin Cancer Risk in Solid Organ Transplant Patients Taking Anti-Rejection Medications | Des Moines, IA |
Mahala Smith | Kroger Health | Determining the Feasibility of Calculating a PREVENT Risk Estimate in a Community Pharmacy | Cincinnati, OH |
Anastasiya Stolyarchuk | ACME Pharmacy and Albertsons Companies | Assessing Proportion of Patients Returning for First Follow-Up Injections of Extended-Release Buprenorphine in the Community Pharmacy Setting | Philadelphia, PA |
Fiza Syed | USC Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences | On The Fence: Exploring Travel Vaccine Hesitancy | Los Angeles, CA |
Alnisha Wheeler | UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy and Cape Fear Clinic | Evaluation of an Opt-Out Medication Packaging Program to Improve Medication Adherence | Wilmington, NC |
Carissa Wilson | University of Iowa College of Pharmacy | Evaluating the implementation of pharmacist-led interventions in achieving disease state goals through the ACCESS Model | Iowa City, IA |
Samuel Wood | Fry's Pharmacy and Midwestern University | Impact of Opt-In vs Presumptive Counseling Language on Naloxone Dispensing Rates in Community Setting | Glendale, AZ |
Victoria Zambrzycki | Walgreens Specialty and Purdue University | Real-world Patterns of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Preexposure Prophylaxis (Prep) Initiation and Persistence Among Women: A Community Pharmacy-Based Analysis | Indianapolis, IN |
*Rothholz Family Innovation in Immunization Practices
Improving Immunization Implementation through Quality Improvement:
Anusha Gupta | HCA Florida North Florida Hospital Outpatient Pharmacy | Optimizing Vaccination Delivery for Transplant and Cellular Therapy Patients Through a Pharmacy-Led Quality Improvement Initiative | Gainesville, FL |
Natalie Elfahel | University of Southern California | Evaluation of Immunization-Trained Pharmacy Technicians on Vaccination and Operational Performance in Community Pharmacies | Los Angeles, CA |
Recipient name | Practice site(s) | Project title | City, State |
Anusha Gupta | HCA Florida North Florida Hospital Outpatient Pharmacy | Optimizing Vaccination Delivery for Transplant and Cellular Therapy Patients Through a Pharmacy-Led Quality Improvement Initiative | Gainesville, FL |
About the American Pharmacists Association Foundation
The APhA Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, DC, is a trusted source of research demonstrating how pharmacists can improve health care. The APhA Foundation's mission is to improve health by inspiring philanthropy, research, and innovation that advances pharmacists' patient care services. The APhA Foundation is affiliated with the American Pharmacists Association, the national professional society of pharmacists in the United States.
SOURCE American Pharmacists Association Foundation
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