The Pharmville Community: A Curriculum Resource Platform Integrating Context and Theory

Abstract

To develop and implement a resource platform consisting of a fictional community of people to augment learning in an undergraduate pharmacy program and to refine patient contact skills. Pharmville, a virtual community comprised of 29 fictional characters in 7 families, was developed that included high-quality video vignettes, photographs, drug structures, documented health profiles, and medical and social histories representative of an Australian metropolitan suburb. Over the next 4 years, Pharmville resources and themes were incorporated into the Bachelor of Pharmacy (BPharm) degree program orientation, and implemented in lectures and tutorials, assessments, independent study resources, and in a variety of contact activities throughout the curriculum. A 2010 comprehensive evaluation found that 21 of the 29 Pharmville characters had been incorporated into teaching materials in about 40% of instructional units in the first 3 years of the BPharm program, that all of the types of resources available were being used, and that use was almost equal between pharmacy practice and science units. A student evaluation of Pharmville showed a positive response to its use, with students able to identify with various characters within the community. Pharmville is an instructional resource that links professionalism and academic study, and provides context for student learning.