Survey of psychiatric pharmacy education at U.S. schools of pharmacy

Abstract

ObjectiveA shortage of health care services dedicated to patients with mental illness exists and will continue to grow with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which has extended insurance coverage to millions of individuals, many in need of psychiatric care. With these changes, the role of the pharmacist continues to evolve as pharmacists assume expanded roles, with hopes of achieving provider status. Thus, evaluating the delivery of psychiatric pharmacy curricula in U.S. schools of pharmacy is necessary to ensure that the students receive a strong foundation to prepare themselves to assume key roles in the management of patients with mental illness. MethodsA 29-item survey was developed and disseminated to 136 schools of pharmacy electronically via SurveyMonkey®. ResultsSixty-two (46%) schools of pharmacy completed the survey. A large number of schools (73%) employ faculty with psychiatric residency or fellowship training. Most schools use a variety of teaching methodologies to deliver content, with didactic lecture being the most common (86%). A majority (69%) of responders feel an adequate amount of time is dedicated to the psychiatric pharmacy curriculum, and 90% believe faculty are appropriately qualified to teach psychiatric pharmacy. ConclusionsPsychiatric pharmacy education is delivered in a similar manner in a majority of U.S. pharmacy schools. Compared to previous surveys, the amount of time dedicated to psychiatric pharmacy increased and more qualified clinical faculty specializing in psychiatric pharmacy are responsible for delivering content. Additionally, an increased number of psychiatric experiential rotations are now available, along with more schools offering elective coursework.