Cover Story: meet Anastasia Shiamptanis, Registrar and CEO of the NB College of Pharmacists

On a service road off Jones Lake in Moncton lies a building whose few occupants assume the sizeable task of protecting the province’s pharmacy patients.

Led by registrar and CEO Anastasia Shiamptanis, PharmD, MHSc., the New Brunswick College of Pharmacists is the provincial body that governs and regulates the practice of pharmacy. It places patient safety above all, which has always been a driving force behind her professional philosophy.

“Patient safety certainly underpins everything [in my career],” says Shiamptanis, who joined the Atlantic region College in 2021. “While patient safety remains at the core, over time, I have learned to lean more into my intuition. When that intuitive signal is accessed, it’s time to be more curious about a decision.”

Finding her path

Shiamptanis grew up in Cobourg, Ontario, in what was a town of just 15,000 residents at the time. Having a tight-knit community around her has had a profound impact, from everyone knowing each other in the neighbourhood to going to the one community pharmacy for healthcare needs. The local pharmacy was incredibly influential, Shiamptanis told The Registrar magazine. She reflects on the moment it became the force behind her career choice, and how considerate and kind patient care makes all the difference.

“I was self-conscious about a particular dermal rash and chose to go the pharmacy as it was familiar and comfortable,” she said. “I remember the way my pharmacist helped me through this situation, and the moment was special because of how [the pharmacist] made me feel. I wanted to be like this person, and knew that in high school, I wanted to become a pharmacist.”

Years later, Shiamptanis earned her Doctor of Pharmacy at the Albany College of Pharmacy of Union University in New York in 2007. She then received her Master’s in Health Science at the University of Toronto in 2019.

Promoting health and well-being

Early in her career, Shiamptanis was a pharmacist and pharmacy manager at Shopper’s Drug Mart, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, and Lakeridge Health. Attracted to the advancement of the profession and the need for strong patient safety, she joined the Ontario College of Pharmacists as strategic policy lead from 2018 to 2021. Shiamptanis also taught at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Toronto.

Applying the lessons gained in her earlier roles as a clinician, her guiding principle has always been to aim to optimize health care to prevent harm.

While her roles have changed throughout the years, she said that her patient-first principle has never wavered. She explains that the overarching goal of public safety resonates as a regulator whose mandate is to set and uphold professional standards for optimal patient care.

“We have the protected titles of Pharmacist and Pharmacy Technician, and regulatory bodies must support these professionals in achieving the standards they set,” Shiamptanis said. “[We as] licensed professionals are doing all that we can for our patients in different ways; mine, as a pharmacist and regulator, is just a unique way of achieving that same goal.”

The current strains in healthcare across all sectors have forced organizations and consumer protection practitioners to find new ways to address prevailing issues. Shiamptanis says due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a greater awareness of how resources can be better utilized when discovering potential solutions.

She says that is key when presenting patients with all possible options, which includes providing better information to consumers while also continuing to empower pharmacy professionals, with regulatory bodies assisting along the way.

New strategic alignment

Shiamptanis says she is most excited about the organization’s Strategic Plan 2023, which continues to place patient care at the core of the organization’s work. She says that the new plan’s focus stems from four pillars:

1. Fostering continuous quality improvement in the profession.

2. Supporting the evolving role and well-being of pharmacy professionals.

3. Enhancing engagement and collaboration with pharmacy professionals, the public, and health system partners.

4. Demonstrating transparency and accountability in self-regulatory responsibilities.

“I’m excited about Pillar One in the Strategic Plan because many may not know just how much work a regulator does to foster quality assurances concerning patient care in pharmacy,” she said. “This goes hand-in-hand with Pillar Two, which is to support the well-being of pharmacy professionals and address well-being as an important part of professional practice.” “We really want to provide more opportunities to engage with pharmacy professionals, stakeholders, and the public, so that input and feedback can not only influence our regulatory instruments but really align with what is happening in practice and with patient care needs,” she said. “Pharmacists can now assess and provide access to medication, such as Paxlovid, in a timely manner, which shows that we can provide options to consumers in a modern, systems-based approach.

Looking ahead

Recently, while attending the Dalhousie University School of Pharmacy White Coat Ceremony, an event inducting first-year pharmacy students, the energy and enthusiasm of future pharmacists inspired and motivated her. Today’s youth remain energized, focused, and ready to rise to the challenge in a world where the future is more uncertain than any in most people’s memories.

“When I was there, I felt pride for two reasons,” Shiamptanis said. “The first was feeling proud of the students and their families who supported them, and the second was pride in how I can now be on this stage and inspire the next generations of pharmacy professionals.”

As for her work, Shiamptanis says that knowing there is always progress to be made continues to drive her.

Recognizing that protecting patients is a never-ending commitment, and improving standards, recognition, and support for the profession are critical components for relevant regulation, she says working with other healthcare leaders with a shared vision of achieving that aim is gratifying.

With a smile, Moncton’s new resident adds, “I hope that it’s my intuition telling me [I’m doing] the right thing.”