Yousra joined Superdrug Pharmacy in Croydon’s Whitgift Centre in 2016, having previously worked for Boots at Gatwick Airport. “This was a very different pharmacy experience: at the airport, you don’t get the one-to-one experience of building relationships,” she explains

Yousra had initially studied pharmacology at university, but had to leave after her father passed away. “However,” she says, “I have been able to continue training and have completed the Buttercups dispenser course.” Now working through the pharmacy technician course, Yousra has also been given the responsibility of looking after the new starters in several Superdrug Pharmacy branches. 

Also in charge of the pharmacy’s monthly health promotion campaigns, Yousra can often be seen out in the Whitgift centre, and another nearby shopping centre, promoting the pharmacy’s services and chatting to potential customers. “It’s lovely to see people coming into the pharmacy to find out more as a result,” she says. 

Yousra has even enlisted the help of one of her daughters – a potential pharmacy star of the future. “For our dental health campaign, my six-year-old came into the pharmacy with me to tell younger children that going to the dentist is fine and not something to be frightened of,” she explains.

Another key campaign is run in conjunction with Macmillan – a charity close to Yousra’s heart as she had cancer herself. “The support from that charity was amazing. I could not have got through it without them,” she enthuses. “I fundraise for them privately and it is wonderful to be able to bring this into the pharmacy.”

In nominating her for the RoE Awards, pharmacy manager Nikita Jethwa said: “Yousra is one of the most caring, intelligent, open people we’ve worked with… Patients always come back and ask to speak to her again due to her exceptional service and care.” 

The judges were impressed by Yousra’s achievements, naming her highly commended in the Pharmacy Champion and Customer Care categories, with Richard Dunne, senior manager professional learning and development at Walgreens Boots Alliance, summing up: “Yousra shows how to balance home and work to bring passion and care into everything she does.”

Go back to the Recognition of Excellence hall of fame