Andrea Forgione – Niagara Health
Andrea Forgione – Medication Reconciliation Pharmacist, Niagara Health
Andrea Forgione has been a pharmacist at Niagara Health for the past 5 years, and currently, the Medication Reconciliation Pharmacist.
Andrea graduated from Brock University in 2008 with a Biomedical degree, and in 2013, received her pharmacy degree from Waterloo University. In her current role she acts as a facilitator, educator, moderator and innovator. She works proactively with the hospital programs, front-line staff, and patients across the region to ensure accurate medication information is obtained at each visit to support safe patient care from hospital to home.
In her spare time, Andrea enjoys research (she has 5 publications and recently participated in the multi-centre Medication Reconciliation Quality Improvement Study through Brigham Hospital in Boston), spending time with her family and giving back to her community.
How do you define community leadership?
To me community leadership, is simply, individuals in the community willing to facilitate action for community betterment. Community leadership is a shared practice.
Why are you personally motivated to explore community leadership?
I am personally motivated to explore community leadership because I enjoy working collaboratively with a team of diverse individuals, meeting and learning from aspiring leaders, and lastly, making a meaningful difference on issues facing my surrounding communities through understanding the gap(s) and then taking action to change and achieve mutual goals.
What, in your view, is the most significant issue/opportunity facing our community? Why?
Mental health illness and associated suicides is an ongoing issue facing our community. And while there are supports in the community this is a significant issue facing our community because many do not seek prevention assistance until it may be too late or because they do not know how.
How you would go about tackling the issue?
My project work with Leadership Niagara will be able to tackle the issue. Our goal is to team up with organization(s) and assist with either creating an awareness campaign or resources for individuals that require support — the idea is for easy to use, timely care and a variety of resources to meet the needs of all individuals.
In your view, what’s the most important attribute of a leader?
In my opinion, the most important attribute of a leader is being an agent of change through a positive attitude that motivates teamwork.
What individual attributes do you hope to develop or expand upon?
The Leadership Niagara program will allow me to strengthen my leadership skills, while building strong relationships with my team and the surrounding diverse communities. I am also confident that I can expand upon my interpersonal, communication and organizational skills.
Additionally, this program will allow me to meet aspiring leaders within my community, understand the needs and challenges within the community, provide the opportunity to network and learn from various leaders as well as explore and together leverage the endless leadership opportunities within my community.