Get to know our Nephrology Program and Division Coordinator
From managing budgets to planning academic half days, Heather Johnston plays an integral role in ensuring our department’s Division of Nephrology runs smoothly.
She has been a Program and Division Coordinator in the Department of Medicine (DoM) at the University of Toronto since 2014. When she first took on the role, she was a Coordinator for three programs – Nephrology, Gastroenterology & Hepatology and Clinical Immunology & Allergy. As the department grew and juggling multiple specialties became an impossible ask, her role was streamlined to only support Nephrology.
Heather’s role involves two main components: the residency side and the division side. She supports her Division Director, Dr. Heather Reich, with budgets, honorariums, fundraising and planning for city-wide rounds, which the division does weekly as opposed to larger events less frequently. On the residency side, Heather manages the entire academic year from scheduling, securing interviewers for the Canadian Resident Matching Service (CaRMS), logistics for events, workshops and academic half days, vacation and elective requests, and occasional fellowship support.
“What I enjoy most about my job, aside from the fantastic people I work with, is hearing our residents say they enjoyed their experience in the program,” says Heather. “I work with the residents from the time they’re interviewing until they graduate, and while every year follows a similar schedule, we’re always looking for ways to improve our processes.”
Another aspect of her role that Heather enjoys is fundraising. While it can be tedious work involving lots of paperwork, she feels proud when she’s able to help the division secure vital funding for the year.
“I like solving puzzles, so I feel a sense of accomplishment when I’m able to create a schedule that suits our residents’ needs or solve a complex problem,” she says.
Heather didn’t always have her heart set on academic medicine. Her love for her kindergarten teacher inspired her childhood goal of becoming a language teacher. She completed an Honours Bachelor of Arts in English and Computer Science, and after graduating, worked in graphic design and computer programming until she later decided to pursue a postgraduate degree in human resources.
“I’ve always had a special place in my heart for medicine because my mom was a laboratory technologist,” she says. “When my son ended up needing medical care after birth, we spent about six months with him at SickKids. That’s when I started looking for jobs in healthcare as I had realized graphic design wasn’t what I wanted to do as a career.”
Heather ended up landing a role assisting neurologist and associate professor in the DoM, Dr. Esther Bui, prior to accepting her current role as Program and Division Coordinator.
“I loved working with Dr. Bui but this job was a perfect combination of education and medicine, so there was no way I could turn it down,” she says.
Outside of her professional life, Heather has a very unique achievement: she used to be a national champion in artistic roller skating – a competitive sport similar to figure skating but done on roller skates.
“I would practice six days a week and then on the seventh day, I’d skate for fun because why not? It was a huge part of my life for about 10 years,” says Heather. “I’ve had a lot of amazing experiences like traveling and attending conferences that I wouldn’t have gotten to experience if not for roller skating.”
Though Heather’s last competition was in the early 90s, she fondly recalls her first job at a roller rink teaching others how to skate and the circles she left on the cement floor in the basement of her family home while practicing. Today, she finds joy in baking, reading, dancing to 80s music and spending time with her dog.
This year, Heather’s 10 years of dedication to the DoM were recognized with the Postgraduate Administrators Advisory Committee (PAAC) Administrative Excellence & Leadership Award from Postgraduate Medical Education at U of T.
“My residents nominated me for the award and had very nice things to say,” she says. “That’s part of the reason why I enjoy working with our residents so much – I feel valued knowing they appreciate the work I do.”
