Event

Join the Economic Club of Canada for a report by the Conference Board of Canada’s Vice President, Public Policy, Louis Theriault, who will discuss the billion-dollar opportunity for governments to fund life-saving health care services in community pharmacy. By looking at three services with the potential for scale up and expansion, the report found that Canada-wide implementation of three community pharmacy services could yield savings of up to $2 billion due to reduced hospital visits, improved productivity, and lower drug costs. An interactive armchair discussion will follow to discuss the opportunity for public and private drug plans to save money and improve the health of Canadians.

-Lunch will be served -

Member price:
Individual seat: $89 +HST
Table (seats 10): $800 +HST

Regular price:
Individual seat: $110 +HST
Table (seats 10): $990 +HST

Alistair Bursey

Chair
Canadian Pharmacists Association

Alistair Bursey is the Chair of the Canadian Pharmacists Association (CPhA). He was elected to the Board of Directors in 2014 as the New Brunswick Pharmacists’ Association (NBPA) representative and as Vice Chair in 2015.

A member of the NBPA Board since 2009, Alistair served as NBPA President from 2011-2014. He has also served on various committees, including the Members Benefit Committee, and was the NBPA representative on the Operations Service Committee on Primary Care for the NB Department of Health.

A graduate of Dalhousie University, Alistair is currently a pharmacist-owner in Fredericton.

Christine Hrudka

Vice Chair
Canadian Pharmacists Association

Christine Hrudka was elected Vice Chair of the CPhA Board of Directors in 2016 and is the Pharmacy Association of Saskatchewan (PAS) representative on the Board. Christine is dedicated to moving the profession forward through innovation and technology. She has served the profession in many capacities over the last 10 years, including board member and president of the Saskatchewan College of Pharmacy Professionals. She currently sits on the board of the Pharmacy Association of Saskatchewan and served as Board Chair for two years, and is a board member for a variety of other pharmacy and community organizations. Christine is a graduate of the University of Saskatchewan and currently owns the Pharmacy First pharmacy in Saskatoon.

Louis Thériault

Vice-President, Public Policy
Conference Board of Canada

Louis Thériault is the Vice-President, Public Policy for the Conference Board of Canada. Louis joined the Conference Board of Canada in 1997, where he specializes in product development and economic analysis. He is currently responsible for research and networks in the areas of national security and public safety, health (including Canadian Alliance for Sustainable Health Care), energy, environment and transportation policy and the Centre for the North.

Formerly, Louis was the Executive Director, Economic Initiatives, responsible for all aspects of the Board's many research programs including the Canadian Alliance for Sustainable Health Care, Canadian Tourism Research Institute, Global Commerce Centre and the research liaison for the new Institut du Québec.

Since joining the Conference Board, Louis has launched several initiatives. He was first responsible for the Metropolitan Outlook Service including a quarterly economic forecast for large Canadian urban centres. In 2003, he launched the Canadian Industrial Outlook Service providing economic and financial trends for large industries. Louis was also director of the International Trade and Investment Center, which offers Canadian business leaders and policy-makers research related to the implications of ongoing restructuring of global production. More recently, he led the Board's health economics group providing forward-looking, quantitative analysis of the sustainability of the Canadian health-care system.

In addition, Louis is a speaker and a media spokesperson on topics related to health economics, international trade and investment and the Canadian economy.

Nardine Nakhla

Adjunct Clinical Assistant Professor
University of Waterloo

Dr. Nakhla is a community pharmacist and academic with interest in common/minor ailments and self-care. As an adjunct clinical assistant professor at the University of Waterloo School of Pharmacy as well as Lecturer at the University of Toronto Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy, Dr. Nakhla has designed and delivered curricular content on the assessment of self-treating patients, common illnesses and self-medication using nonprescription medicines in both the lecture and practical laboratory setting. She has spoken at provincial, national and international meetings on these subjects, and has written a chapter for the Canadian Minor Ailments reference. As a columnist for Pharmacy Practice+, Dr. Nakhla writes about common and current issues related to OTC counselling. In addition to her extensive academic work, Dr. Nakhla is a part-owner of an independent pharmacy and regularly practices as a community pharmacist.

She is an effective, enthusiastic and knowledgeable educator who is dedicated to and actively involved in the education and empowerment of community-based patients, pharmacists and healthcare providers.

Perry Eisenschmid, BBA, MBA, C.Dir., H.R.C.C.C.

Chief Executive Officer
Canadian Pharmacists Association

Perry Eisenschmid was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Pharmacists Association (CPhA) in June 2013.

Perry has extensive experience in marketing financial services, consumer packaged goods and not-for-profit member services. His broad expertise includes marketing, sales and information technology with specific interest in strategy, branding, product management, web and social media innovation.

Perry obtained his BBA and MBA from the Schulich School of Business, York University. In 2010, he achieved certification as a Chartered Director (C.Dir.), and in 2013, he received Human Resources and Compensation Committee Certification (H.R.C.C.C.), both from the DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University.

Prior to joining CPhA, Perry was the Vice President of Marketing, Sales and IT with the Conference Board of Canada. He also had business responsibility for the organization’s multi-million dollar subscription and publications business and its web-based distribution channel. He was President and CEO of CIBC Trust and an executive for several years in CIBC’s Wealth Management Group.