Dr. Mary De Vera, assistant professor in the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of British Columbia (UBC), is profiled as a Woman Leader in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) by the Government of Canada in their 2018 budget, released yesterday.
As Canada Research Chair in medication adherence, utilization, and outcomes, Dr. De Vera focuses on helping individuals correctly take their prescription medications. This area of study involves exploring the various barriers to medication adherence that people face, such as the cost of prescription medications and challenge of managing multiple prescriptions, and investigating solutions to overcoming those barriers, including the use of eHealth technologies.
“Ensuring medication adherence ensures diseases and chronic medical conditions are properly treated,” explains Dr. De Vera. “This translates into improved health outcomes for patients and lower costs to the health care system overall.”
Dr. Mary De Vera holds a BSc degree in biochemistry at UBC and MSc and PhD degrees in health care and epidemiology from the UBC School of Population and Public Health. She also completed post-doctoral fellowships at the University of Montreal's Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences and UBC's Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences. Dr. De Vera is an expert in patient outcomes studies, particularly in arthritis. She is also an expert in population studies using administrative databases, with cross-Canada experiences in British Columbia (Population Data BC, formerly BC Linked Health Database) and Quebec (Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec).
“My career in STEM continues to be an extremely rewarding experience. My passion for the work that I do is driven by the fact that my research is having a positive impact on people’s lives.”
The Government of Canada has published numerous resources online to help inspire Canadian women to pursue a career in STEM.