Patient Care Rotations

The patience care rotations team utilizes an innovative regional Communities of Practice model to provide students with direct patient care experience all across Ontario from Windsor to Ottawa, from Thunder Bay to Port Colborne and countless communities in between! The fourth year clinical rotations at Waterloo Pharmacy are the only ones in Canada that operate with a decentralized approach. This structure is more practical and flexible than a traditional model. There are 14 Regional Clinical Coordinators (RCCs) who are practicing pharmacists within their respective regions.

350+ Pharmacist preceptors across Ontario volunteer annually

300+ Unique sites throughout the province

120 In-person site visits from RCCs per year

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Rotations at a glance

Each region has its own Regional Clinical Coordinator (RCC) who is dedicated to supporting student success and immersion in their respective communities of practice. RCCs not only recruit and train the best preceptors, they also engage regularly with the students and preceptors throughout the 4th year.

Noëlla Robert-Kappel, Barrie-Huntsville

Janie Bowles-Jordan, Hamilton-Brantford

Stephanie Lynch, Kingston/Belleville

Michael Collins, Waterloo Region & area

Leni Salgado, London & area

Donnie Edwards, Niagara Peninsula

Doug Brown, Oshawa-Durham Region

Jennifer Kutten, Ottawa

Tracy McCoy, Sault Ste. Marie

Claude Charbonneau, Sudbury, North Bay, and Manitoulin Island

Angela Heintzman, Thunder Bay and Sioux Lookout

Rose Patodia, Toronto

Alexandra Fanick, Windsor-Essex, Chatham & Sarnia

Kristen Watt, Owen Sound Grey-Bruce

Rotations in the news

Student experiences

“I love that I can walk down the streets of Gore Bay and know almost everyone I meet. This translates to the pharmacy environment as well: you’re not only the pharmacist, you’re also their friend.”

Taylor Geertsema

“I loved the opportunity to learn from locals. If you come in with the right attitude it can be such a rewarding experience. You have to want to be here and the locals will recognize that."

Christine Sorin, Rx2019

"You make the best of what life gives you by seeking out opportunities to learn and grow, and I’ve been able to do that at the hospital's Cancer Centre by consistently approaching the pharmacy and nursing staff to identify ways I can help out. "

Rifah Quadiri

"We chose this profession because empathy is what drives us to care for our patients in the best way we know. I have seen firsthand the resiliency and strength that comes from a pharmacy team that is dedicated to providing optimal patient care."

Charina Alducente

Preceptor experiences

“We’ve been blessed to have two students who have been absolutely amazing. It’s a credit to the profession that these young professionals are able to adapt to the changes in practice. We’ve been so impressed with the students and coordinators.”

Stephen Bond, Yurek’s Pharmacy

"I had some challenges finding a preceptor [as a student], This is one of the many reasons I made up my mind to become one. Preceptorship is also a way of contributing to the growth and uplifting of the profession."

Boluwaji (Felix) Ogundipe, Costco

"I appreciate the students because they teach me so much. Thank you to the school for giving me this opportunity to be a preceptor."

Vishal Acharya, Lancaster Wellness Pharmacy