New director role will develop lifelong learning opportunities for pharmacists, health professionals

Since January 2023, we have seen a significant expansion of pharmacists’ scope of practice in Ontario. And jurisdictions across the country continue to look to pharmacy professionals for sustainable solutions to building capacity and quality across healthcare.

To support these shifting needs, the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy is pleased to announce that Kathy Vu, Associate Professor – Teaching Stream has accepted the position of Director, Continuous Professional Development, Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy.

“With scope of practice continuing to expand and evolve, there is a significant opportunity for our Faculty to contribute and collaborate on developing innovative professional development programs for pharmacists,” said Acting Dean Micheline Piquette-Miller.

In this new role, Associate Professor Vu will provide academic leadership and expertise for the Faculty’s Continuous Professional Development (CPD) program which equips pharmacists, industry professionals, researchers, and allied health professionals with enhanced skills to better respond to the shifting needs of patients and our health system.

Educating pharmacy for tomorrow

As of September 2023, administrative and academic support for the CPD program is based out of the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, transitioning from U of T’s School of Continuing Studies. This transition marks an important step toward realizing key goals outlined in the Faculty's five-year plan, Emerge, Thrive, and Lead: Academic Plan 2022 – 2027 including to develop and deliver new professional development programs for alumni and the wider pharmacy and health professions community.

“This is an exciting opportunity to align with our goal to educate pharmacy for tomorrow and develop leaders, wellness and community."

“This is an exciting opportunity to align with our goal to educate pharmacy for tomorrow and develop leaders, wellness and community,” said Vu. “With a sharpened focus on lifelong learning and the expanding role of pharmacists in healthcare, we are well positioned to offer new programs that will help shape the future of our profession and industry.”

A pharmacist with expertise in oncology and cancer care, Vu’s dedication to advancing healthcare knowledge is well-recognized. Her leadership in developing and delivering  U of T courses for practicing pharmacists such as the Essentials of Oncology for Pharmacists and Advanced Oncology for Pharmacists, as well as her recent creation of two new massive open online courses (MOOC) focused on biosimilar biologic medications, have contributed significantly to health professional and patient education opportunities. Additionally, since 2017, Vu has been Director of the PharmD for Pharmacists (PFP) program and will continue to provide leadership for the PFP program going forward.

Full launch of programming to come in 2024

Over the next few months, Vu will work through what the newly developed programming could look like and how best to address existing and emerging gaps in professional training.

“We are in the early days of assessing needs across pharmacy and exploring new and innovative ways to deliver continuing education,” she said. “We are looking forward to connecting with our many colleagues and stakeholders to create meaningful learning opportunities to support enhanced patient care.”