Rate My Professor Sarah Dineen-Griffin

Associate Professor Sarah Dineen-Griffin serves in the School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy within the College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing at the University of Newcastle. She earned a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Technology Sydney, a Master of Pharmacy in 2013, and a Bachelor of Biomedical Science in 2011, both from the University of Newcastle. Her career began as a pharmacy assistant at age 14, progressing to managing multiple pharmacies and becoming an Accredited Medicines Review Pharmacist. She transitioned to academia with roles including Lecturer in Health Management and Leadership at Charles Sturt University from 2020 to 2022, Lecturer in Pharmacy at the University of Newcastle from 2022 to 2023, and her current position as Associate Professor since 2024. Additional appointments include Adjunct Senior Lecturer at Charles Sturt University and Honorary Assistant Professor in Pharmacy at the University of Nottingham.

Her research focuses on clinical pharmacy and pharmacy practice, primary health care, community pharmacy services, pharmacist prescribing for minor ailments, self-care, self-management, and health services research. Key publications include 'Helping patients help themselves: A systematic review of self-management support strategies in primary health care practice' (PLOS ONE, 2019, co-authors Dineen-Griffin S, Garcia-Cardenas V, et al.); 'Cluster randomised controlled trial evaluating the clinical and humanistic impact of a pharmacist-led minor ailment service' (BMJ Quality & Safety, 2020); 'Cost utility of a pharmacist-led minor ailment service compared with usual pharmacist care' (Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation, 2020); and 'The landscape of self-care in Australia: A pharmacy perspective' (Exploratory Research in Clinical and Social Pharmacy, 2024). She has secured over $8.8 million in grants, leading two NSW Government-funded trials totaling $8 million to expand community pharmacists' scope of practice for prescribing oral contraceptives, urinary tract infection medications, and treatments for minor skin conditions, treating over 20,000 patients. Awards include the Early Career Researcher Award (University of Newcastle, 2023), FIPWiSE Women in Science and Education Excellence Award (2022), Newby Award (2022), UTS Faculty of Health Dean’s Award for Outstanding PhD Thesis (2021), and Pharmaceutical Society of Australia NSW Young Pharmacist of the Year (2021). She contributes to policy as a member of the Review of Australia’s National Medicines Policy and delivers public lectures on pharmacist prescribing and primary health care integration. Her work has influenced NSW Health legislation and garnered over 250 citations.