Why Honour These Companies?
Community Shares would like to recognize West Island businesses who went above and beyond since the beginning of the pandemic. Many local businesses have played an important role in the fight against COVID-19 , and often did so behind the scene. Our goal is to shed the light on the hard work of their employees.
At West Island Community Shares, we are fortunate to be able to rely on the generosity of many corporate partners. We often talk about the impact that they have on their local community, but what the pandemic has done, is highlight what they are doing for all Canadians.
Medtronic, New Look Vision Group, National Bank, Tenaquip and Pfizer Canada have taken a leading role in the battle against COVID-19 in their own way, and they need to be commended for their fight and their continued support of the community.
At West Island Community Shares, we are fortunate to be able to rely on the generosity of many corporate partners. We often talk about the impact that they have on their local community, but what the pandemic has done, is highlight what they are doing for all Canadians.
Medtronic, New Look Vision Group, National Bank, Tenaquip and Pfizer Canada have taken a leading role in the battle against COVID-19 in their own way, and they need to be commended for their fight and their continued support of the community.
Before the pandemic, it was inconceivable that a medical technology company would share their intellectual property. And yet, Medtronic didn't hesitate to share the specs for their portable ventilators with the world! |
The surge in demand for ventilators in Canada and around the world spiked so quickly during the pandemic, it was impossible for traditional ventilator manufacturers to keep up with the demand. As part of its own open source initiative, Medtronic publicly released the design specifications for its PB560 on March 30, 2020 and since then it has received more than 200,000 registrations for the design specifications. Manufacturing was only one of the many obstacles faced by Medtronic employees to get the ventilators into the hands of healthcare workers. Read more...
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New Look Vision Group mobilized its resources to quickly produce and ship protective eyeglasses, manufactured in St-Laurent to meet the needs of the healthcare workers, in response to a call by the Quebec Government. |
From a community standpoint, at the budding stages of the pandemic, New Look Vision Group announced the creation of the “Guardian Angels” program, a priority program for healthcare workers to receive eye care services as fast as within 24 hours. This initiative was made available across Canada in order to protect healthcare workers’ vision and allow them to continue providing essential services. Read more...
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National Bank quickly responded to support those most in need. Emergency funds were given to support community organisations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic which included more than 100 community organizations across the country. |
Now more than ever, National Bank is demonstrating its commitment to delivering on its one Mission—having a positive impact on clients, employees and the communities it serves—in all of its activities. The One Mission has been central to the Bank’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic since March 2020. Here's an overview of the measures and programs rolled out by National Bank, temporarily or on an ongoing basis, since the start of the pandemic to minimize its negative impact on clients, employees and the community. Read more...
Stéphane Achard, Executive Vice-President
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TENAQUIP, one of the largest PPE suppliers in Canada, used all of their contacts here and in China, and even created relationships with new suppliers, to ensure PPEs were available to healthcare workers, first responders, governments, and essential businesses. |
As one of the largest PPE suppliers to Canadian companies, we knew that our products would be in high demand. We worked hard with our suppliers in order to secure as much product as we could in a short time frame to do our part in the process. This was very challenging as the primary PPE products (respirators, nitrile gloves and hand sanitizer) were in tremendous demand, and the supply chain was upended greatly. There was a huge run on product and with China closed for a long period of time, this meant that much of the import products were not available. Read more...
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Pfizer's effort in the fight against COVID-19 goes beyond the development of this historic vaccine. It includes an ethics pledge, support of community organisations, and sharing of resources including encouraging employees who are licensed healthcare professionals to volunteer on the front lines. |
Pfizer's commitment to the world went beyond the development of a vaccine. In addition to West Island Community Shares, Pfizer Canada has made significant donations to front-line community organizations, including Centraide/United Way, the Canadian Red Cross, Breakfast Club of Canada, Fondation CHU Sainte-Justine, and many more. Bringing the first COVID-19 vaccine to market is a true team effort that starts with a well defined plan. To find out more about Pfizer's 5-point plan, and historic pledge with other pharmaceutical companies, continue reading...
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