Report of the 2014-2015 Professional Affairs Standing Committee: Producing Practice-Ready Pharmacy Graduates in an Era of Value-Based Health Care

Abstract

Background and Charges According to the Bylaws of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP), the Professional Affairs Committee is to study issues associated with the professional practice of pharmacy as they relate to pharmaceutical education, and to establish and improve working relationships with other organizations in the field of health affairs. The Committee is encouraged to address related agenda items relevant to its Bylaws charge and to identify issues for consideration by subsequent committees, task forces, commissions, or other groups. President Patricia Chase established the themes of Access, Affordability and Accountability for the 20142015 standing committees. (1) The 2014-2015 Professional Affairs Committee (PAC) was charged with examining the contributions of experiential education to the development of practice-ready pharmacy school graduates who are educated and trained for current and future practice. Experiential education, comprised of Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experiences (IPPEs) and Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPEs) and represents up to 30% of the pharmacy school curricula, are the entry points for student pharmacists into pharmacy and patient care practice. Specifically, the 2014-2015 Professional Affairs Committee is charged to: (1) Describe the elements that should be present for access to exemplary experiential sites; (2) Identify how student pharmacist readiness for and contributions to experiential education should be considered to illustrate the value to experiential practice sites; and (3) Recommend strategies to the academy to demonstrate its accountability that graduates are practiceready. Members of the 2015 PAC include individuals representing multiple disciplines across various colleges and schools of pharmacy, as well as professional staff representation from the American Pharmacists Association (APhA), the American Society of Health-Systems Pharmacy (ASHP) and the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS). The committee began its work by reviewing pertinent background information and resource materials and participating in a conference call to develop an initial strategy for addressing committee charges. The committee members met for a day and a half in Crystal City, Virginia on October 27-28, 2014 to discuss the various facets related to the committee charges, as well as to develop a process and strategies for addressing the charges. Following the process development and delegation of assignments related to the committee charges, the PAC communicated via electronic communications as well as through personal exchanges via telephone and email. In developing the strategy to address their charges, the PAC considered numerous factors that contribute to the current needs, future needs and contributions of practice-ready pharmacists. Examination of pertinent issues relevant to both experiential education and pharmacy practice were explored from the perspectives of access, value (the PAC examined the value of experiential education as an applicable aspect of affordability) and accountability. The continued evolution of the healthcare environment, including implications for pharmacists and team-based care from the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), (2) the expanding role of pharmacists in a dynamically-changing health care system, (3, 4 5 6) and emerging interprofessional, collaborative practice models, such as Patient Centered Medical Homes (4, 7 8) and Affordable Care Organizations, (9) were discussed. The Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) release of Draft Standards 2016 (10) and the Guidance Document to Draft Standards 2016, (11) which was finalized February 2015, (12,13) are other important aspects that should forecast the content and impact of experiential education. The recently revised Joint Commission of Pharmacy Practitioners (JCPP) Vision for Pharmacists' Practice (14) and the recently approved Pharmacist Patient Care Model, (15) which describes a consistent process of care in the delivery of patient care services by pharmacists, are additional avenues that must be included in all aspects of pharmacy education. …