Nursing alum Noel Saraza on forging a non-traditional career in public health and pharma

When Noel Saraza (BScN 1997) graduated from nursing school, health care spending cuts meant he along with many of his peers, were finding it hard to secure stable nursing jobs.

 Instead of heading south of the border like many of his peers, Saraza chose to stay in Toronto, working a variety of jobs at nursing agencies, in primary care, and sexual health clinics.  During his final rotation at Bloomberg Nursing, he worked with marginalized communities in Toronto’s Regent Park neighbourhood, where he learned and appreciated the value of community health and preventative healthcare. Saraza realized that not only did he find this work interesting and meaningful, but he felt that with his expertise, he could do more.

He began working for Peel Region’s Public Health Department in the communicable diseases and vaccine preventable diseases division, where he was involved in communicable disease control, vaccine management & public health inspections in personal services settings.

“My days working in public health marked the start of what became a non-traditional career for me as a nursing graduate, but one that has been built on my core values as a nurse, and my time in nursing school,” says Saraza.

Bringing a nursing perspective to pharma

In 2007 he made the decision to move into the pharmaceutical industry, joining GlaxoSmithKline where he led public health strategy. Moving into the pharmaceutical space he says was somewhat frowned upon at the time, but he saw this as an opportunity to bring a nursing and public health perspective to the life sciences environment; specifically, where innovative pharmaceutical strategies were being formed.

“It was important to me to ensure that patients and communities would benefit from innovative medicines. I saw this as a way to improve the overall health and wellbeing of entire communities while reducing health inequities,” says Saraza.

Saraza is currently the Senior Manager Payer Engagement & Strategic Partnerships, Vaccines & Immune Therapies at AstraZeneca Canada. When he first joined the company in 2014, he was working on the oncology pipeline. He learned not only about oncology therapeutics and the various types of cancer for which treatments were being developed, but also became acutely aware of a patient’s cancer journey.

“I really saw this as an opportunity to collaborate and bring my nursing perspective and my core competencies including empathy and relationship building to a corporation, helping to ensure that patients who are the recipients of these innovations, were being considered,” says Saraza. “That to me was a way to expand my advocacy and leadership as a nurse.”

Saraza sees nurses as influential leaders, they lead by building relationships, gaining trust and support, not necessarily commanding it. He believes these skills are imperative in the life sciences and health care space, especially in leadership roles.  and he is eager to see more nurses evolve in their leadership capacity beyond the traditional scope of nursing practice.

“I’m eager to see more nurses evolve in their leadership capacity beyond the traditional scope of nursing practice,” says Saraza.

Investing in solutions to transform health

Saraza has recently become a donor to the Lawrence Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing Research Fund. His decision to give back to his alma mater was motivated in part by his work in the pharmaceutical and public health space and his strong belief in the capacity of nurse-led research to affect transformative change across the health care system.

“Investing in research drives innovation. By supporting nursing research I’m investing in solutions that support innovation in nursing and health care, and ultimately demonstrate the leadership of nurses in transforming health care for countless communities,” says Saraza.

Nursing is never far from Saraza’s mind. He credits his exceptional mentors in public health for reminding him to bring his nursing perspective to work every day. This perspective is what encouraged him to take part in the Peel Region’s COVID-19 vaccination campaign “Doses after Dark” where he vaccinated hundreds of residents at the height of the pandemic.

“The COVID-19 pandemic was a very difficult but fulfilling time, and I’m proud that I have been able to weave together my nursing skills, my educational foundation, and my desire to help people, into a successful career,” says Saraza. “I encourage soon to be nurses to put yourself out there, seek out mentorship, and don’t be afraid to consider non-traditional areas of healthcare to hone your expertise.”