U of T Pharmacy: Preparing culturally informed clinical leaders

Toronto is one of the most diverse cities in the world. With over half of the cities’ population identifying as a visible minority, healthcare providers who interact with patients on a daily basis must be able to make meaningful connections with people from numerous cultures. This is a rich environment in which to practice – and to learn.

Michael Chan, a recent PharmD grad from the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Toronto, is looking forward to launching his career as a community pharmacist. He expects to work in an area of the city where many of his patients will be of Chinese descent. Michael was born in Hong Kong, China, and speaks both Cantonese and Mandarin. But he knows that to truly engage his future patients, he will need to do more than speak their mother tongue. He will need to offer an understanding of traditional Chinese medicine practice so that he can provide the best possible advice and guidance when it comes to medication management and possible interactions with conventional Western medicines.

In June 2017, Michael was a fourth year PharmD student starting his Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE), a dynamic, 36-week program consisting of seven, five-week rotation blocks. These rotations take place in a variety of practice settings, with five rotations involving direct patient care.

For his second rotation, Michael applied for an international placement with the Hong Kong Institute of Integrative Medicine (HKIIM) at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK). The experience was transformative.

“A patient’s perception of medication and treatment is often culturally specific,” said Michael. “In this rotation, I got to learn about other cultures and approaches to pharmacy practice and how patient perceptions of medical care are different.”

One of the most memorable experiences was working in the Chinese medicine dispensary at HKIIM, which houses over 500 different traditional medicines. “In a sense it’s very similar to a Western pharmacy, and in some ways it was a bit more interesting because you are interacting with the medicines in a sensory way,” he said.

The focus on bridging traditional Chinese medicine with Western approaches will help Michael have more informed conversations with patients. “The reality is we don’t know every single possible interaction between traditional medicines with pharmaceutical medications but research evidence is catching up,” says Michael. “Now that I have a better understanding of the theory behind traditional medicine, this will help me support patients who are using both.”

This international experience was supported by the Faculty of Pharmacy’s Enhancing the Student Experience Fund, which was established through annual donations of alumni, industry, friends, faculty and staff. Michael is also quick to recognize Doret Cheng, Lecturer with the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, and Drs Zuo and Chan from CUHK and the staff from HKIIM.

“Without this support, my rotation in Hong Kong would not have been possible,” said Michael.

Michael’s advice to incoming pharmacy students? “Be very open to different modalities of medicine and patient preferences while getting treatment so you can build constructive relationships and conversations with your patients.”