CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR AWARD RECIPIENTS

Congratulations to Dr Sharon Gardiner and Marilyn Tucker who were the two recipients of our Fellowship Award 2022.

The National Executive may designate as a Fellow of the Society any member who in their opinion has made an outstanding and significant contribution to the advancement of the practice of pharmacy in New Zealand. You can learn more about Sharon and Marilyn below:

Dr Sharon Gardiner

Sharon registered as pharmacist in 1995 having spent much of her childhood working in her parent’s community pharmacy, but nearly failing to achieve acceptance into Pharmacy School.

In 1997, she commenced employment as a medicines information pharmacist in the Clinical Pharmacology Service at Christchurch Hospital. While there, she developed her first research interest in drug safety in breastfeeding and enjoyed contributing to the evidence base that helped healthcare providers and ultimately parents make decisions about whether to breastfeed when maternal drug therapy was involved. She completed a Masters in Clinical Pharmacy degree with distinction in 2002. In 2007, her PhD in pharmacogenetics was recognised by the University of Otago as an ‘Exceptional Thesis’ and she was given a New Investigator Award at the Australasian Society of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacologists & Toxicologists conference that same year. Sharon continued to work in community pharmacy part-time until being appointed in a new role as antimicrobial stewardship pharmacist in Canterbury District Health Board (now Te Whatu Ora Waitaha Canterbury) in 2013.

Sharon has worked to advance antimicrobial stewardship nationally including co-founding and co-chairing the New Zealand Antimicrobial Stewardship and Infection Pharmacist Expert Group (NAMSIPEG) in 2020. She has co-led three national initiatives for World Antimicrobial Awareness Week (Indications on Antimicrobial Prescriptions in 2020, Penicillin Allergy in 2021, and an Antibiotic Amnesty in 2022), and a viewpoint calling for national leadership and co-ordinated antimicrobial stewardship action (2021). She was a member of the expert panel for the Prime Minister’s Chief Science Advisor’s report entitled Kotahitanga – Uniting Aotearoa against Infectious Disease and Antimicrobial Resistance (2021), and a Mānatu Hauora – Ministry of Health nominee for a global consultation on raising awareness of antimicrobial resistance undertaken by the quadripartite agencies (2022). Beyond antimicrobial stewardship, she has led development of a multi-disciplinary multi-service sepsis improvement programme in Te Whatu Ora Waitaha Canterbury (2022). All of this work is continent on (and much improved by) working collaboratively within her own region and nationally.

Marilyn Tucker

The first part of Marilyn’s pharmacy career was predominantly in hospital, initially training at Greenlane in Auckland, then moving to St Helen’s hospital. She later worked at the Royal Melbourne, Wellington and Kenepuru hospitals.

While working in Wellington, mental health became a major focus for Marilyn. While still studying for a Master of Clinical pharmacy degree, she was offered an exciting new position working in primary care for two Independent Practice Associations (IPA's). This aligned with a new emphasis on evidence-based medicine and improving the quality of prescribing and reducing unnecessary medical testing. A medication management project in Kapiti PHO led to additional pharmacists and an expanding clinical role.

She also worked with the Hawkes’ Bay DHB, helping to organise pharmacist education, setting up an audit of psychotropic use in residential care, recommending the appointment of a PHO pharmacist and working towards practice-based pharmacists.

GOLD MEDAL AWARD FOR DR NATALIE GAULD

Congratulations to Dr Natalie Gauld who has been awarded the 2022 PSNZ Gold Medal Award. Gold medals are pinnacle awards and there have only been 33 awarded in total.

Dr Natalie Gauld has 30 years of passion for making medicines accessible in pharmacy.

Her reclassification work included Medicines Classification Committee membership (2004-2009) during a time of many reclassifications. She then approached Pharmacybrands (now known as Green Cross Health) to collaborate on driving reclassifications including vaccinations, trimethoprim, topical calcipotriol, topical adapalene and selected oral contraceptives. She reclassified sildenafil with Douglas Pharmaceuticals (first in world) and melatonin with Aspen Pharma. Research with others included pharmacist availability of diclofenac tablets, oseltamivir, trimethoprim, vaccinations, sildenafil, and oral contraceptives, and pharmacist management of insomnia. This research has helped highlight new roles for pharmacists, aided reclassifications, and helped inform her development of screening tools and education of pharmacists. Her PhD research saw her interview representatives from medicines regulators, industry, academia, pharmacy and others across nine countries, to understand how and why medicine reclassification varies internationally.

Natalie's work has often been ground-breaking, including contributing to a model of administration for anti-D (a blood product) through community pharmacists. She started a Pharmacy Hepatitis C Test and Treat Programme with Prof Ed Gane.

Natalie's years on the Pharmaceutical Society's Auckland Branch included intern rep and president. Her 8 year membership of the National Executive of the Pharmaceutical Society of New Zealand included Treasurer, and Vice President.

Natalie's awards include Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit (ONZM) for services to pharmacy and health, Fellowship of PSNZ, Distinguished Alumnus of the School of Pharmacy, University of Otago, and co-winner of the Supreme Pharmacy Award (twice) and the Ko Awatea International Excellence in Health Improvement Award for Developing a Flexible and Sustainable Workforce. Natalie has worked in community pharmacy, hospital pharmacy, in a clinical trials unit, teaching and at a district health board. She is an Honorary Senior Lecturer at the School of Pharmacy, and Honorary Senior Research Fellow at the Department of Paediatrics, at the University of Auckland. She provides consultancy through her company, Natalie Gauld Ltd.