The addition of women’s health initiatives to an established remote population health introductory pharmacy practice experience

Abstract

BackgroundIn 2018, a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) primary care service and a school of pharmacy collaborated to offer introductory pharmacy practice experiences (IPPEs) in population health. Working remotely from the VA facility, students spent 2 hours per week using information from VA clinical dashboards and electronic health records (EHRs) to perform population health activities. Beginning August 2020, women’s health initiatives were incorporated. ObjectiveThe objective was to evaluate student learning and productivity in an established remote population health IPPE that included women's health initiatives during a coronavirus disease (COVID-19)–related university closure. Practice descriptionDuring 2 IPPE semesters, activities of second-year student pharmacists were tracked. The course is typically conducted remotely at the university; however, owing to COVID-19 restrictions, students completed the course from their homes. Students were granted remote access privileges to VA’s EHR and precepted by VA clinical pharmacists using Microsoft Teams. Students performed prescription drug monitoring program activities; reviewed outside medical records for breast and cervical cancer screening results, laboratory test results for diabetes, and medication safety monitoring; and documented progress notes. Practice innovationPopulation health IPPEs can be tailored each semester to include a variety of initiatives. Activities are conducted remotely, eliminating the need for space and computers at the VA facility. The remote design enabled students to continue the IPPE during COVID-19 restrictions. EvaluationStudents completed a survey about their confidence performing population health activities at baseline and at the completion of the IPPE. Student workload data were collected over 2 semesters. ResultsA total of 70 students reviewed 8865 health records and documented 5322 progress notes. Statistically significant improvements in student’s reported abilities were reported from baseline to course completion such as explaining breast and cervical cancer screening recommendations. ConclusionIncorporating women’s health initiatives into a remote population health IPPE assisted the VA facility with population health activities and increased students’ perceived skill.