Waterloo Pharmacy's associate director of clinical education and professor Dr. Nancy Waite won the 2022-23 Everyday Hero Minister’s Award of Excellence from the Ontario Ministry of Colleges and Universities, awarded by Jill Dunlop, Minister of Colleges and Universities at First Nations Technical Institute (FNTI) in Deseronto, Ontario. This award recognizes faculty and staff who have made a difference in the lives of their students, colleagues or the public. Dr. Waite's dedication and years of research to understand the feasibility and acceptability of pharmacist-administered immunizations has led to over 7.5 million doses of administered COVID-19 vaccine by community pharmacists.
Everyday Hero Minister’s Award of Excellence 2022-23: Nancy Waite
Dr. Nancy Waite
Dr. Waite is the associate director of clinical education and professor at the University of Waterloo’s School of Pharmacy. Dr. Waite completed her BScPhm at the University of Toronto, her PharmD at Wayne State University and Posdoctroal Fellowship at Wayne State University.
Dr. Waite’s research program examines medication/vaccine management and pharmacy practice with a focus on innovation in an evolving health-care landscape. Her research focuses on the impact pharmacists and pharmacy technicians have on improving vaccine uptake, addressing vaccine hesitancy and vaccine monitoring. This includes ensuring that marginalized and underserved communities have access to vaccination and pharmacy services. She also examines the impact of other pharmacist scope of practice changes, pharmacy curricular renewal, including novel experiential education models, and technology implementation.
She is co-founder of the Ontario Pharmacy Evidence Network (OPEN), a platform for medication management and health system research across several institutions, with over 50 researchers and strong collaborations with government, payer, and healthcare professional organization knowledge users.
It is an honour to nominate Dr. Nancy Waite for an Everyday Hero Award. Her leadership and unique skillset as a pharmacist and researcher have positively impacted vaccination rates and improved the health of Ontarians.