Plenary on sub-theme: 1.3 Red soils – cultivating lifelong learning
| Thursday, July 10, 2025 |
| 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM |
| Blackwattle Rooms 1-3 combined, PARKROYAL Darling Harbour |
Speaker
Prof Zubin Austin
University of Toronto
The power to change
1:30 PM - 2:30 PMAbstract
Psychologists define “power” as the capacity to influence the behaviour of others. In all aspects of life – including education and practice – power is an essential but often overlooked facet of interpersonal communication. Historically, the pharmacy profession has been described as “subordinate” to the power of medicine; today in many parts of the world with expanding scopes of practice, power is shifting but the fundamental psychological relationships established between pharmacists, physicians, patients, and others may not have kept pace. This presentation will review the psychology of power and the ways in which one’s own assumptions about power and powerlessness can be a barrier or a facilitator to change, professional satisfaction, and growth. Understanding and reflecting upon the psychology of power can be a powerful tool for individuals and is increasingly necessary for pharmacists involved in complex interpersonal and interprofessional, and political situations.
Biography
Zubin Austin BScPhm MBA MISc PhD FCAHS is Professor and Murray Koffler Research Chair at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy and the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Canada. His research focuses on the professional and personal development of the health workforce. He has published over 250 peer reviewed manuscripts and authored 4 textbooks, including “Management, Leadership, and Entrepreneurship in Pharmacy” recently published by the Pharmaceutical Press – UK. In 2017, in recognition of the global impact of his work, he was installed as a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences, the highest honour for health researchers in Canada. He is also the only University of Toronto professor ever to have been awarded both the President’s Teaching Award for sustained excellence as an educator and the President’s Research Impact Award for the international significance of his work. He has been named Professor of the Year by pharmacy students on 21 separate occasions.
