Abstract
Background: Technology is increasingly used to enhance pharmacy education. We sought to evaluate student learning and preparedness for community introductory pharmacy practice experiences (IPPEs) after implementation of “MyDispense” into experiential education. Methods: Both first-year pharmacy students and assigned community IPPE preceptors were eligible. Students were stratified based on previous community pharmacy experience (< or ≥ 50 h), then randomized to complete MyDispense exercises before IPPE (group A) or after 24–32 h of IPPE (group B). We evaluated preceptors’ assessment of student readiness using a 6-item Likert scale survey and students’ readiness and opinion of MyDispense using an anonymous 9-item survey. Descriptive statistics were used to characterize data. The Mann–Whitney U test was used to compare groups and a p-value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Of 177 eligible students, 155 were randomized and 56 completed study. Group A included 32 students; 56.3% had prior community practice experience. Group B included 24 students; 50% had prior community practice experience. Forty-eight preceptors were enrolled. Students who completed exercises before rotation received higher preceptor scores for patient counseling of self-care and of medications (p < 0.05 for both). Students self-assessed their counseling skills lower than all other skills; 30.4% and 42.9% of students felt mostly or always prepared to counsel for self-care and medications, respectively. Students found MyDispense straightforward, realistic, and appreciated the ability to practice in a safe, electronic, community pharmacy, patient-care environment. Conclusion: Simulation-based software, such as MyDispense, can enhance learner understanding of the prescription fill and counseling process in a community pharmacy practice setting.
Highlights
As technology becomes more ubiquitous throughout education, institutions of professional healthcare learning are incorporating various tools for students to utilize [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16]
Of the 177 first-year pharmacy students eligible for study participation, 155 students enrolled in the study and 56 (36%) students completed the survey (32 in group A and 24 in group B) (Table 3)
1 5-point Likert scale responses: 1 = not at all; 2 = some of the time (1–40% of the time); 3 = about 50% of the time; 4 = most of the time (60–99% of the time); 5 = all of the time (100% of the time). This is the first study evaluating the use of MyDispense in preparing first-year pharmacy students for introductory pharmacy practice experiences (IPPEs) rotations in community pharmacy
Summary
As technology becomes more ubiquitous throughout education, institutions of professional healthcare learning are incorporating various tools for students to utilize [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16]. A 2015 review of the available literature detailed a large variety of technology being used in schools of pharmacy for improving patient care [18]. A survey in 2016 of 431 pharmacy students found that students preferred a blended approach to learning and not an online-only or in lecture-only approach [19] These studies represent the desire of pharmacy schools and students to utilize technology in traditional and nontraditional educational settings. A 2014 review of 17 studies of the available literature determined that little evidence exists to support the use of e-learning in improving skills for professional practice [20]. We sought to evaluate student learning and preparedness for community introductory pharmacy practice experiences (IPPEs) after implementation of “MyDispense” into experiential education. Conclusion: Simulation-based software, such as MyDispense, can enhance learner understanding of the prescription fill and counseling process in a community pharmacy practice setting
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