Abstract

Background and purposeDrug interaction management is essential in pharmacy practice. The purpose of this study was to evaluate student pharmacists’ ability and confidence using drug information databases to investigate a drug–drug interaction previously unencountered in the curriculum. Educational activity and settingA cross-sectional study was conducted where didactic students were presented with three cases, each containing an interaction. Students were asked to select a drug information resource and determine the mechanism, clinical effects, severity, level of documentation, and course of action for each interaction. Overall performance was assessed on a 15-point scale (one point for each assessment item for each interaction), and students were asked to rate their confidence on a five-point scale for each interaction, yielding a 15-point confidence scale. FindingsFor the 187 participants (90.8% response rate) who completed each interaction assessment, overall median performance score was 14 out of 15 possible points (IQR 12–15); 58 (31.0%) earned the maximum score of 15 points. Median confidence score was 13 out of 15 possible points (IQR 12–14). DiscussionThis study uniquely assessed students’ competency in interactions by focusing on analysis, as opposed to recall of basic facts. Although most students performed well, a significant minority earned an overall performance score of 80% or less, suggesting need for continued practice and improvement. SummaryThis cross-section of student pharmacists earned generally high performance scores when assessed on their ability to use a drug information resource to analyze interactions, and were mostly highly confident.

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