When Wayne Hindmarsh received an email from the Governor General’s office wondering if he had time to talk on the phone, he figured he knew why.
“I’m a reviewer for somebody else’s name that has been submitted for the Order of Canada,” said Wayne. “So, I got all the material out before they called and thought I was going to be talking about her. When they called, they said, ‘Oh no, it’s about you.’ So, it was a total shock. I had no idea there was even anything submitted.”
The Governor General’s office had called to inform Wayne that he was selected to be a Member of the Order of Canada, which recognizes distinguished service in or to a particular community, group, or field of activity.
Wayne has had a distinguished career as a pharmacist, mostly in academia and research as a professor with the University of Saskatchewan before serving as dean of the schools of pharmacy for the University of Manitoba from 1992 to 1998 and the University of Toronto (U of T) from 1998 to 2009. He remains Dean Emeritus for the U of T. Before his academic career began, Wayne completed his PhD at the University of Alberta (U of A) in 1970.
“We loved Edmonton,” said Wayne of his time at the U of A. “In fact, we hated to leave after I graduated. What I learned at the University of Alberta really provided me with what I needed to move ahead in my profession.”
After he graduated, Wayne knew he wanted to pursue a career in academia; however, there were no opportunities. Instead, he accepted a role with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Regina as a forensic toxicologist, analyzing if drugs were involved in suspicious deaths. In 1972, he finally made the transition to academia and research, where he really made his mark in pharmacy in Canada.
“I think I thought, maybe naively at the time, that I could change the whole work profile of a pharmacist—you know, counting, licking, and pouring really wasn’t what a pharmacist should do—pharmacists have so much other knowledge,” said Wayne. “I got quite involved in trying to get the PharmD program into Canada. It was quite a struggle, but we’ve got it now, and pharmacists are being recognized for being very important members of the healthcare team.”
Wayne has also contributed to his profession in other ways, including serving on the board of the Canadian Pharmacists Association, as president of the Association of Faculties of Pharmacy of Canada, and as chair of the Pharmacy Examining Board of Canada. Currently, Wayne is the chief executive officer of the Canadian Council for Accreditation of Pharmacy Programs (CCAPP).
“I thought it was important to contribute to the betterment of those organizations and what the organization stood for,” said Wayne. “And it was a leadership thing, too. I think it was always striving for the profession.”
Wayne has experienced much change in pharmacy during his career and believes it’s a great time for pharmacy. Over the next 10 years, he’d like to see pharmacy professionals’ relationships with other healthcare professionals—in particular, prescribers—continue to evolve.
“I think in some of our teaching of pharmacy, we were looking for drug-related problems. That whole thing just bugged me right from the very beginning,” said Wayne. “Why are we doing that? Why don’t we look for better courses of medication for the individual instead of looking for problems. When you’re looking for problems, you’re telling the prescriber, ‘We’re looking at something that you did incorrectly.’ So, I think we’ve got to develop better relationships with the prescribers.”
Wayne is now awaiting word on when he will receive his award at an upcoming investiture ceremony in Ottawa. In the meantime, the Alberta College of Pharmacy congratulates Wayne on being named a Member of the Order of Canada!
