Abstract
BackgroundThe ability to communicate effectively is an essential skill for a pharmacist. However, the curricula of most pharmacy schools in South Korea do not include communication skills training (CST). This study aims to evaluate the effects of CST in pharmacy education.MethodsThis study was a comparison of pre- and post-intervention surveys completed by sixty fifth-year pharmacy students who participated in communication skills and patient counseling training during the spring 2017 semester. The students were asked to respond to 49 questions addressing 4 self-assessment categories: communication skills (24), attitudes (19), and confidence levels (2) at the beginning and end of the CST, and their perception of CST (4) after completing the course. The training session included lectures, small group work, role play, videos, and performance feedback by a tutor. Data were analyzed using the paired t-test with Bonferroni’s correction for multiple comparisons. The open-ended questions were analyzed using inductive content analysis.ResultsThe pharmacy students’ self-assessment of their communication skills, attitudes toward the communication course, and confidence levels showed significant improvement after the CST. Most students (96.7%) indicated the necessity of a pharmacy communication curriculum. They responded that CST is helpful for effective communication with patients (33.3%) and other healthcare professionals (31.7%). Role-playing was reported as the most preferred learning method (58.3%).ConclusionsCST significantly impacted pharmacy students’ skills, attitudes, and confidence levels related to communication skills and patient counseling. These findings indicate that communications training should be included in the regular curriculum of pharmacy schools.
Highlights
The ability to communicate effectively is an essential skill for a pharmacist
The Center for the Advancement of Pharmaceutical Education (CAPE) and the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) have emphasized communication skills training (CST) to develop skills that are necessary in the health care environment [5, 6]
The aim of this study was to provide students the opportunity to participate in well-designed communication training, and to explore their attitudes about the value of a communications course in the pharmacy curriculum, their perceived differences in the patient communication skills and their level of confidence in the ability to communicate with patients
Summary
The ability to communicate effectively is an essential skill for a pharmacist. The curricula of most pharmacy schools in South Korea do not include communication skills training (CST). Effective communication skills are vital in the pharmacy profession. As pharmaceutical care has become more patient-centered, the communication abilities of pharmacists have become more important. The Center for the Advancement of Pharmaceutical Education (CAPE) and the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) have emphasized communication skills training (CST) to develop skills that are necessary in the health care environment [5, 6]. Pharmacists require effective communication skills to provide patient-centered care within an interprofessional health care team [7, 8]. In other words, developing competence in communication is as important as acquiring pharmaceutical knowledge and clinical skills
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