Integrating research into clinical practice improves medication and patient safety

The Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy is pleased to announce that Lisa McCarthy has joined the clinical, social, and administrative sciences research division in the department of pharmaceutical sciences as associate professor, effective October 1, 2023.

Widely recognized as a pharmacist leader and clinician scientist, McCarthy’s research program is fueled by her clinical practice experience and guided by the goal of optimizing the appropriate use of medications across health systems. In recent years, her research has focused on studying the people, processes, and resources needed to co-design and evaluate integrated care models to optimize care experiences for older adults.

An expert in deprescribing, McCarthy recently received the prestigious 2023 CIHR Mid-Career Investigator Prize for Research in Aging, that will support her work to ‘dial back’ diabetes overtreatment in long term care. In 2021, McCarthy became the first pharmacist clinician scientist at Trillium Health Partners (THP), a unique role built through a partnership between the Trillium Pharmacy Department, Institute for Better Health, and the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy. At THP, she played a pivotal role in expanding the Pharmacy Department’s research platform and supporting quality improvement initiatives within THP’s Seniors Care Unit. She also actively contributed to patient care as a pharmacist.

“We often talk about prescribing medications and starting new treatments, but appropriate medication management also includes deprescribing and helping patients and families reduce or even stop taking medications that are no longer helping,” says McCarthy. “I am excited about exploring ways to further integrate deprescribing into health professional curricula across U of T.”

“I am excited about exploring ways to further integrate deprescribing into health professional curricula across U of T.”

As a key figure in the internationally recognized deprescribing.org initiative, she helps to develop evidence-informed guidelines as well as tools and approaches for healthcare providers and the public, to support medication management and deprescribing. Since 2013, the deprescribing.org research team has developed five medication-class focused deprescribing clinical practice guidelines and associated tools to support deprescribing decisions. The guidelines have been endorsed by the College of Family Physicians of Canada, the Canadian Pharmacists Association and other national and international bodies, including the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (UK). Guideline knowledge mobilization tools have been modified and translated for use around the globe. The team is currently developing new guidelines and working with other groups to support deprescribing guideline development.

“Our guidelines and tools are used around the world and our team now spans the country, with hubs in Vancouver and Toronto,” says McCarthy. “I’m excited to make U of T our Toronto-home and increase the involvement of pharmacy students in our activities.”

As associate professor, she will continue to foster the international reach of her research and expand her educational contributions across the entry-to-practice and graduate programs at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy. “We are very fortunate to have such an exceptional educator, researcher, and leader as part of the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy community,” says Acting Dean Micheline Piquette-Miller. “Her remarkable achievements continue to shape the landscape of pharmacy practice, policy and research, and are helping make medications safer for patients.”