Zahid Somani, Pharmacist-Owner, has 15 years of experience in HIV treatment. Starting as a new University of Toronto Pharmacy graduate at a chain drugstore in the Church-Wellesley area of Toronto, Zahid remembers the very limited treatment options available to HIVers. “In 1994 the first triple-therapy cocktails were just coming out. Until then we only had AZT and patients would come in to the pharmacy with Kaposi lesions and need extremely high doses of antibiotics and antifungal drugs to fight off opportunistic infections. We used to lose patients every week….it was awful.”

“Today, I see my role as part education and part treatment access. Given the strides science has made in this field, the challenge now, is to make sure patients are on the least toxic and best-tolerated regimens. Also, given the complexities of private insurance, Trillium and ODSP, I use a lot of my time advocating for clients and making sure they can afford their meds. I try to accommodate their financial situation as much as possible.”

“I work together with patients, their physicians, Aids Service Organizations such as ACT and PWA, community services such as Casey House and Fife House to make sure that patients can afford their meds and are able to tolerate them well enough to take them everyday, which is essential.