Meet Brendan | A Paediatric Oncology Clinical Pharmacy Specialist who sets children up for success when facing a cancer diagnosis.
For children diagnosed with cancer, there’s an entire range of medications from IV to oral that they’ll need on their journey. Brendan helps ensure that children and families in Children’s Hospital’s Paediatric Oncology Program understand their medication routines and have all the tools they need to take them safely at home.
Brendan is a Paediatric Oncology Clinical Pharmacy Specialist who helps protect children at Children’s Hospital, London Health Sciences Centre in three main ways:
- Supportive Care Through Education
- Advocating for Access
- Implementing Leading Technology
1. Supportive Care Through Education:
Brendan’s favourite part of his work is coaching families through treatment.
“In every different stage of treatment, I provide guidance and resources like medication calendars. Their personalized calendar tells them what each medication does, the dose, when to take them and the side effects. Guiding families through their medication calendar is crucial to helping them feel comfortable and confident taking meds at home.”
2. Advocating for Access
Brendan serves on the Paediatric Oncology Group of Ontario (POGO) Therapeutic and Health Technology Advisory Committee, where he advocates for child-specific drug solutions:
“Cancer medications are usually designed for adults. Tablets are often too strong for children, which means caregivers must cut or dissolve them — and that carries risk. At POGO, I help advocate for safer, evidence-based solutions that work for children.”
3. Implementing Leading Technology
Brendan also champions safer, innovative tools like the RxCrush.
This device lets caregivers crush a tablet, add liquid, and draw up an accurate dose — without the risk of spilling or inhaling medication dust.
At Children’s Hospital, hope isn’t a wish; it’s created every day.
Thanks to Brendan’s daily work, families feel safer and more supported managing complex oral chemotherapy treatments at home.
Brendan’s role exists thanks to donor generosity
“Before the Jahnke family’s generous donation, I was being pulled in a billion directions. We didn’t have a dedicated pharmacist to perform patient education. Thanks to the Jahnkes — and donors like them — I can now focus full-time on supporting patients and families. It’s truly spectacular.”
Because of Children’s Health Foundation donors, Brendan and his colleagues are not only guiding families through today’s treatments, but also shaping safer, better care for the future.
The generous support of donors is why hope lives at Children’s Hospital.
👉 Give today to fund the innovations that bring hope to every child facing cancer.
