Abstract
The changing environment of pharmacy care represents an opportunity to implement an innovative educational form into the teaching process, which represents a significant potential in preparing pharmacy students for their future profession. The main objective of the assessment was to evaluate the contribution of the innovative education project Advanced Training in Pharmacy Care (ATIP) as a complement to the compulsory curriculum at the Faculty of Pharmacy of the Comenius University in Bratislava. Another objective was to analyse the obstacles to dispensation and counselling perceived by students of the educational project. The assessment uses data from the ATIP educational project carried out between 2015/2016 and 2020/2021 at the Faculty of Pharmacy of the Comenius University in Bratislava. Data collection was provided through a questionnaire survey among the participating students after completing each year of the project. The assessment focused on students' perception of the ATIP educational project, characterizing their readiness to provide pharmacy care and obstacles to the implementation of pharmacy care. Students perceived the project as an interesting addition to the curriculum, which was organized at a high professional level with reasonable difficulty. In the case of their readiness for their future profession by studying and passing compulsory practice, students were critical in their answers. Obstacles affecting the implementation of pharmacy care that prevailed among students were a lack of practical experience, a lack of time to address the patients' problems, and different requirements of patients from the knowledge acquired during study at the faculty. In other obstacles, such as a patient's lack of interest, lack of privacy to talk, etc., students have taken a neutral stance. This innovative education project pointed out the importance of cooperation between various organisations, such as academic, pharmaceutical and student, in the field of education of future health professionals.
Highlights
Pharmacists are considered the some of the most accessible healthcare professionals, among healthcare experts
The role of pharmacists has extended beyond the traditional role of dispensing medications to provisioning of patient counselling on lifestyle modifications, medication therapy management, disease state management, and ensuring optimal medication adherence (Elnaem, 2020). This trend of change demonstrates a beneficial effect on patients' therapeutic and safety outcomes for various diseases and conditions, including diabetes mellitus, obesity, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, psychiatric diseases, and others (Tan, 2014)
The items of the questionnaire were divided into 3 sections, namely students' opinion on the Advanced Training in Pharmacy Care (ATIP) educational project, the educational process at the Faculty of Pharmacy, and barriers in dispensation and counselling based on personal experience gained during the compulsory practice
Summary
Pharmacists are considered the some of the most accessible healthcare professionals, among healthcare experts. The role of pharmacists has extended beyond the traditional role of dispensing medications to provisioning of patient counselling on lifestyle modifications, medication therapy management, disease state management, and ensuring optimal medication adherence (Elnaem, 2020). This trend of change demonstrates a beneficial effect on patients' therapeutic and safety outcomes for various diseases and conditions, including diabetes mellitus, obesity, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, psychiatric diseases, and others (Tan, 2014). The dispensing of prescription and non-prescription medicines (OTC, over-the-counter) remains the main priority for most pharmacists (Mináriková, 2019)
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