Past PLA Scholarship Recipients

2022 Pharmacy Leadership Academy (PLA) Scholarship Recipient

  Recipient  
 Ginny Cummings

Ginny Cummings,

BScPharm, ACPR

Alberta Health Services (AHS)

Ginny works in Calgary at a community hospital, caring for both inpatient and ambulatory internal medicine patients. She has worked in many clinical areas during her career including internal medicine, cardiology, and critical care. As a Clinical Practice Leader, she supports over 20 pharmacists at the Peter Lougheed Center, providing leadership, coaching and practice development support.  Most recently, Ginny has been heavily involved in the development and implementation of a province-wide electronic health record system known as Connect Care (Epic ® based). 

Ginny’s superpower is her ability to connect with people - she leads with authenticity and empathy to find ways to relate to and motivate others. Ginny’s leadership style is based in collaboration and curiosity – she believes that “the true value of a leader is not measured by the work they do. A leader’s true value is measured by the work they inspire others to do” (~Simon Sinek).  


Outside of work, her life is full of volunteering, dog walks, and enjoying time outdoors with her three boys.

 

2020 Pharmacy Leadership Academy (PLA) Scholarship Recipient

  Recipient  

 

 

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Deonne Dersch-Mills

BScPharm, ACPR

Alberta Health Services (AHS), Calgary Alberta

Dr. Deonne Dersch-Mills completed her BScPharm at the University of Alberta, a pharmacy practice residency in Calgary, and a graduate PharmD at the University of British Columbia. She is currently a Clinical Practice Leader for the Provincial Pharmacy Operations portfolio at Alberta Health Services. Her clinical practice is out of the Alberta Children’s Hospital NICU and she supports pediatric and neonatal pharmacy practice throughout Calgary Zone and provincially. In addition to this role, she is the Pharmacy Research Coordinator for AHS, overseeing and supporting medication-related research both by external researchers as well as by internal pharmacy staff, including Year 1 and 2 resident research projects. She has been involved with CSHP for many years, most recently during a 3 year term as an Alberta Branch presidential officer.

 

2019 Pharmacy Leadership Academy (PLA) Scholarship Recipient

  Recipient  
 

Amy Smith-Morris

Saskatchewan Health Authority

Dr. Amy D. Smith-Morris completed a Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy from the University of Saskatchewan, an Accredited Canadian Pharmacy Residency with the Regina Qu'Appelle health Region, and a Post-Baccalaureate Doctorate of Pharmacy from the University of Toronto. She has focused her career as a front-line oncology pharmacist caring for people fighting cancer. Her real education in oncology came when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer at the age of thirty. During her chemotherapy, she live-streamed her treatments, answered viewer questions from around the world. She continues to share and document her experience as a cancer pharmacist turned cancer survivor through various social media outlets.For her efforts, she received the Award of Merit (Pharmacists Association of Saskatchewan), a Woman of Distinction Nomination (YWCA), and was awarded the honor of CBC's Future 40. Dr. Smith-Morris continues to take action to help others battling cancer by sharing insights on how you can provide better care for patients with cancer.

2018 Pharmacy Leadership Academy (PLA) Scholarship Recipient

  Recipient  
 

Megan Riordon

Kingston Health Sciences Centre

Originally from Pokeshaw, New Brunswick, Megan completed her Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry at Mount Allison University (Sackville, New Brunswick), then obtained a Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy at Dalhousie University (Halifax, Nova Scotia).  She moved to Kingston, Ontario in 2012 for a Hospital Pharmacy Residency and has been working at Kingston Health Sciences Centre ever since, becoming Pharmacy Manager of Clinical Practice in 2016.  She is actively involved in CSHP.  As a pharmacy student and resident, Megan held the National Student Delegate position, and she is currently finishing her second term as Chair of the Ontario Branch’s Quinte-St. Lawrence Chapter.  Megan will soon become the Ontario Branch National Junior Delegate.

2017 Pharmacy Leadership Academy (PLA) Scholarship Recipient

  Recipient  
 

Stan Dyjur

Red Deer Regional Hospital, in Red Deer, Alberta

I have had the privilege to care for patients in a collaborative, clinical practice in adult acute in-patient psychiatry at the Red Deer Regional Hospital since 2012. Having been one of the pharmacists who started the practice in 2012, I have been able to use this experience to not only coach and mentor pharmacy residents as the residency coordinator of Alberta Health Services (AHS) Central Zone for a period of time, but also practicing pharmacists in my most recent temporary role as a Clinical Practice Leader in AHS.

Even though I am passionate about our great profession, what I am most proud of and grateful for is my family, including my three blessed children: Gage (8 years old), Sasha (6 years old) and Esmee (2 years old).

2016 Pharmacy Leadership Academy (PLA) Scholarship Recipient

  Recipient  
 

Mayce Al-Sukhni

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

Mayce is a pharmacist at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto. In addition to her patient care duties, she is a Pharmacy Education Coordinator at CAMH and has served as a preceptor to many pharmacy students and residents. She is also an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Toronto, where she has been a facilitator in various courses. Mayce is passionate about the profession of pharmacy and is an active member of both CSHP and ASHP, serving on several committees within these organizations.

 

2015 Pharmacy Leadership Academy (PLA) Scholarship Recipient

  Recipient  
 Zack

Zack Dumont

Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region

Zack is the Clinical Support Pharmacist with the Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region. He also works part time with the RxFiles as an Academic Detailer and medSask as a Medication Information Consultant. Zack graduated from the University of Saskatchewan with a Degree in Pharmacy in 2008, and completed a hospital pharmacy residency in Regina the following year. His clinical interests include Cardiology and Internal Medicine, with a practice in the Heart Function Clinic. His other responsibilities include providing clinical support to the Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee, the Research Ethics Board, and precepting the Pharmacy Residency Evidence-Based Medicine rotation.

 

2014 Pharmacy Leadership Academy (PLA) Scholarship Recipient

  Recipient  
 

Sheena Neilson

Alberta Health Services

Sheena Neilson graduated with a BSc Pharm from the University of Alberta in 2006, and she has worked in both community pharmacy and hospital oncology pharmacy through 2012.  Sheena is now part of the provincial Pharmacy Services Business Operations team with Alberta Health Services, where she specializes in workload measures, key performance indicators and related initiatives that help advance hospital pharmacy practice in Alberta.  Sheena is actively involved in the Faculty of Pharmacy (University of Alberta) and the Canadian Society of Hospital Pharmacists (CSHP) pharmacy student mentorship programs, and she serves on the Executive Council for the University of Alberta Alumni Association.

 

2013 Pharmacy Leadership Academy (PLA) Scholarship Recipient

  Recipients  
 

Shirin Abadi

BC Cancer Agency

Dr. Shirin Abadi is a Clinical Pharmacy Specialist and Education Coordinator at the BC Cancer Agency in Vancouver.  She is also a Clinical Associate Professor of Pharmacy and an Associate Member of Medicine at the University of British Columbia, where she teaches for the Faculties of Pharmacy, Dentistry and Medicine. 

Shirin is very passionate about humanity and the provision of exemplary patient care.  She has had the great privilege of working with incredible leaders and considers it an immense honour to be the first recipient of the Pharmacy Leadership Academy Scholarship.  She is very grateful to CSHP for this wonderful opportunity.