Kannan Maharajan

Kannan Maharajan is an Associate Professor of Pharmacy at James Cook University. A pharmacist with a PhD in Pharmacology and postgraduate qualifications in Pharmacy Practice, he has over 20 years' experience in pharmacy education, academic leadership, and research across India, Malaysia, and Australia.

He has led the design and delivery of integrated pharmacy programs at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, including BPharm, PharmD, the UK MPharm (delivered in Malaysia), and a Master of Pharmacy Practice he developed from the ground up. His teaching centres on patient-centred care through simulation-based learning, interprofessional education, and prescribing-focused approaches aligned with international accreditation standards.

Kannan's research spans social pharmacy, patient safety, and quality use of medicines, with particular focus on health literacy, emergency preparedness, and healthcare workforce resilience. He has published more than 60 peer-reviewed articles including in JAMA Network Open, PLOS One, and BMJ Open, secured competitive research funding, and supervised research students across pharmacy, medicine, public health and biomedical science. He welcomes enquiries from prospective PhD and higher-degree research candidates in these areas.

He collaborates with healthcare partners, community organisations, and professional bodies to strengthen social accountability in pharmacy education, and contributes to the discipline as an active peer reviewer. He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AdvanceHE) and the Royal Society for Public Health.