Holland Bloorview’s clinical pharmacy team

Holland Bloorview is proud to be recognized for its commitment to interprofessional care and inclusive learning.

Pharmacy Practice + Business has awarded Holland Bloorview the 2025 Interprofessional Initiative Award. University of Waterloo has recognized the hospital as a long-standing co-op employer providing transformative experiences for students pursuing careers in the health-care sector and beyond. Together, this recognition highlights the hospital’s deep commitment to advancing collaborative care that’s grounded in clients and families, and training future health-care professionals in pediatric disability.

Championing collaborative care

The Interprofessional Initiative Award recognizes efforts to advance client care by integrating clinical pharmacy services within an interprofessional team, specifically through the hospital’s psychopharmacology clinic and its Extensive Needs Service program.

“We’re proud to be recognized for this award,” said Nathan Ho, director of the pharmacy team, noting that more than half of the clients supported by interprofessional teams have three or more clinical diagnoses. “As client needs become increasingly complex, collaboration among health-care professionals is essential. Building trust and respecting each team member’s expertise fosters strong partnerships, while leveraging individual strengths ensures timely and personalized care.” 

Ho points to one of the key successes, which has been the creation of the interprofessional transition clinic in 2021. Led by a nurse practitioner and pharmacist, the  team ensures safe transitions and follow-up care for clients and families returning to their community health-care provider. As a result, this initiative has increased capacity in physician-led psychopharmacology clinics, helping to cut wait times by over 50 per cent.

L to R: former U of Waterloo co-op students, Danielle Paes and Justina Yeung

Supporting students with career-ready skills

As one of the University of Waterloo’s long-standing co-op employers in health care, Holland Bloorview’s preceptors equip students with the career-ready skills they need to secure meaningful employment and contribute to long-term improvements across the hospital.

In fact, the pharmacy department has hired a co-op student from the Ontario university each of the past 13 years. 

“Waterloo students make a significant contribution here by providing collaborative client-centred medication therapy management to support the work of the clinical pharmacists,” says Ho. “They bring fresh ideas. Their work has led to compelling business cases for automation and technology investments, optimization of workflows impacting the client experience and the synthesis of the latest evidence-based medical literature to support safe and effective medication management.”

What’s more, since 2017, four of the students have been hired as clinical pharmacists including Carly Diamond, who completed her co-op placement over a decade ago, an experience that ‘profoundly shaped the pharmacist’ she is today. 

“The opportunities I was given, combined with the support of an exceptional team, laid a strong foundation for my career. The co-op program was a key reason why I chose Waterloo’s pharmacy program, and it is especially meaningful to now support students within it. Mentoring students has allowed me to come full circle, and I strive to provide the same empowering, supportive and respectful learning environment that was so instrumental in my own development.”

University of Waterloo co-op student Siimar Leen Kaur is pictured above with her academic supervisors, Ka Lun Tam, senior research engineer [left], and Quinn Song, research systems officer in the Bloorview Research Institute [right].

Siimar Leen Kaur, a University of Waterloo computer science student completing her co-op placement in the Bloorview Research Institute, has also found her experience deeply rewarding. “The research operations team has fostered an environment built on trust and initiative, creating a space where I can take on complex, technical challenges. It’s rare for a student to build technical systems while clearly seeing how they can potentially support pediatric rehabilitation research, and ultimately improve health outcomes for clients and families. I feel fortunate to be contributing to this team.”

Learn about more student training opportunities at Holland Bloorview.