PORTLAND, Ore. — A Northeast Portland pharmacy has been recognized by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Association of Immunization Managers for giving the most vaccinations out of any other pharmacy in Oregon.
Sandy Le is the owner of LECARE Pharmacy and was named the state's "Immunization Champion."
"The total that we have done so far, the whole team, that is 45,000 vaccines," Le said.
After opening the pharmacy with her husband Thanh in 2021, Le said her staff got right to work. Her husband is also a pharmacist. She said her team made it easy for people to walk in and get vaccinated.
"Sometimes it's hard to find a vaccine or make an appointment online," Le said. "If we have the walk-in, people can just come in and get the vaccine."
Le said her team also had events across the city which helped get thousands of people vaccinated. When the clinic first opened, Le had to coordinate how many doses the pharmacy would get.
"400 per week, 800 every two weeks, then they gave us 800 doses and we finished that in four days," Le said.
Le said her entire team was resilient throughout the pandemic. As an immigrant from Vietnam, she's no stranger to challenges.
"I came as a refugee," Le said. "I lived in Hawaii with my guardian, finished my high school there, and then my guardian passed away from cancer."
Le graduated from Oregon State University almost 20 years ago. She said her team will continue to go above and beyond for the people in the community.
"I am so happy we have helped so many people," Le said.