‘I wish I could see the end of the day’ — a Pfizer exec on the fight for health equity
How does Big Pharma take a step in the right direction for health equity? The road isn’t easy, but many of the larger drugmakers are starting down that path. For pharma giant Pfizer, that effort spans many different partners who can help them reach the communities that need it most.
As part of the Communities in Action for Health Equity grant program launched by the Pfizer Multicultural Health Equity Collective and the company’s Institute of Translational Equitable Medicine, Pfizer awarded $2 million to 11 nonprofit organizations in the U.S. that offer community solutions to health inequities.
Running that program is Niesha Foster, vice president of global health and social impact at Pfizer, who spoke about the process of finding partners in the fight against inequity, specific organizations involved in that effort and what accessibility really means in healthcare.
This interview has been edited for brevity and style.
PHARMAVOICE: You’ve provided grants to 11 nonprofit organizations with an eye toward health equity. Can you tell me about that process?
NIESHA FOSTER: In our strategic planning in 2022, we were looking at understanding the underpinnings of what’s driving inequities for certain underserved groups, and we didn’t just want to be admirers of the problem. We wanted to be part of the solution. And so we brought together these partners to look specifically at those solutions in communities addressing some of these major systemic issues driving inequities and health outcomes. We didn’t want to just leave that conversation in the room — we wanted to create what we all like to call the ‘red thread’ through some of our work and the strategy implementation. We documented solutions that came out of the conversation, and then we wanted to then put our money where our mouth is and add these grants. So the grants were part of our overall strategy in saying, yes, there is a problem.
“We were looking at understanding the underpinnings of what’s driving inequities for certain underserved groups, and we didn’t just want to be admirers of the problem. We wanted to be part of the solution.”
Niesha Foster
Vice president, global health and social impact, Pfizer
Tell me a little more about one of those partners to paint a picture of the direction you’re headed.
One of the partners that we awarded a grant to that we’ve had a long-term partnership with is called Día de la Mujer Latina, focused on Spanish-speaking populations in the U.S. One of the major challenges [is] around workforce pathways and making sure there are healthcare providers in the industry who look like the patients they seek to serve, and are culturally bilingual and culturally trained on what’s happening within the community. They take community health workers, and they train them to be trusted advisors to Spanish-speaking individuals in the community, and encourage them to engage with the healthcare community and with their physicians. So that’s meaningful work in terms of making sure people feel comfortable engaging the system.
What is the long-term goal that you hold yourself accountable for — the data points you’re aiming to achieve — at the end of the day?
I wish I could see the end of the day. It’s a multi-generational challenge. But ideally, we want to make sure everyone has equal opportunity for quality care, and that it’s accessible. So when we think about these different pieces we’ve pulled together and the organizations we’re funding in the grants program, it’s asking: How do you move policy so that people are able to get different opportunities funded? How do you make sure the people in front of a patient are able to treat them with care and dignity? How do you make sure all these different pieces coming together are driving equitable opportunities and healthcare?
Accessible can have a few meanings in healthcare. Can you help define that?
Accessible is about individuals being able to get care in the normal course of their day. If I work in a certain location, I shouldn’t have to take my lunch break or some other part of my day to go to the doctor — I should not have to take my whole day in order to get my treatment, especially if I’m in a job that does not necessarily allow me the flexibility. So it’s making it so that it’s easy for people to get to and that it’s affordable when they finally do get there.
I’m glad you said affordable. How has Pfizer committed to that part of accessibility?
I have the good fortune overseeing this grants program and leading the Pfizer U.S. patient assistance program called Pfizer RxPathways, which directs patients to different affordability programs that we run. For instance, we may have a copay card for branded medicine that someone may be eligible for. Or if all other options fail, we also have a free drug program for people that meet the eligibility requirements. We’ve had this program ongoing for 35 years. That’s another pillar in our equity strategy.
We know how important it is to meet communities where they are. As a Big Pharma company, how do you approach community leaders in a successful way?
It’s a great point, because people may have one idea of what a pharma company is and what our priorities are. And then when they get to meet with us, it can be very different. We are persistent in identifying those organizations that are in the community and making a difference. We sometimes know about them, because we have colleagues who are in the field and they interact with them in different ways. But we also have our own relationships with organizations and they will introduce us to other organizations. For example, we had the great fortune of being introduced to an organization based in the Mississippi Delta, one of our grantees called the Essie B. & William Earl Glenn Family Foundation for Better Living, and they are doing a lot of work in the community around ensuring nutritious foods are available in food deserts [and] making sure good dental care is accessible to the community. They were referred to us by one of our long-term partners in the collection, the Multicultural Health Equity Collective.
So it comes to us in different ways, but we don’t give up when there’s a partner we want to work with and we just continue to show up. That’s how you build trust until they’re ready to work with you on a deeper level.
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