Mina Tadrous, PHARMD, MS, PHD

Medications are an important core component of healthcare and drug costs are the fastest rising expense to the healthcare system. To tackle this challenge, Mina Tadrous, PharmD, is using data to better understand and improve the way we use and pay for medications. His research explores everything from how safe and effective a drug is to how we can improve how healthcare providers prescribe it.

Policies, interventions, reimbursement rules and emerging system issues all affect how medications are used, prescribed and distributed. Policymakers face steep challenges in curbing rapidly rising drug costs particularly with a growing number of rare conditions and diseases. In addition, despite being the gold standard in getting market approval, clinical trials often fall short in measuring safety and understanding how drugs work in clinical settings. By better understanding how these factors impact access and outcomes, Tadrous is helping fill this health gap by using real-world evidence to help decision-makers understand the real value of medications.

Tadrous is also exploring the lack of sex-specific analysis in clinical trials that can be potentially damaging to women’s health. Due to a lack of sex and gender emphasis, safety and efficacy concerns impacting drug therapies and treatment protocols for women may not have been addressed. Tadrous’ work aims to better understand these health gaps to ensure clinicians are well-informed about sex-specific differences that affect how medications are prescribed.

By optimizing and enhancing the way we use our medications, Tadrous’ research is helping ensure the sustainability of public drug programs – both in our province and across Canada.