American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education

As first-time pass rates on the North American Pharmacy Licensure Examination (NAPLEX) continue to decrease, pharmacy educators are left questioning the dynamics causing the decline and how to respond. Institutional and student factors both influence first-time NAPLEX pass rates. Pharmacy schools established before 2000, those housed within an academic medical center, and public rather than private schools have been associated with tendencies towards higher first-time NAPLEX pass rates. However, these factors alone do not sufficiently explain the issues surrounding first-time pass rates...

OBJECTIVE: As the digitalization of health accelerates, the fusion of pharmacy and informatics becomes crucial. Pharmacy education must adapt to equip professionals for this evolving landscape. This study aims to compare pharmacy curricula in Brazil and the USA, focusing on health informatics, to uncover challenges and opportunities in training pharmacists for the digital era. METHODS: A cross-sectional, descriptive analysis was conducted on pharmacy curricula from leading Brazilian and American universities in early 2024...

OBJECTIVE: One of the barriers that might prevent an underrepresented minority (URM) individual from pursuing a professional career in the United States is finances. The high disproportionate burden of student debt among URM students further perpetuates the racial wealth gap. Therefore, this study sought to evaluate the extent to which URM students' personal finance perceptions, and current and projected student loan indebtedness, affect post-graduation career intentions. METHODS: A cross-sectional analysis was conducted using data from 4 cohorts of pharmacy students using a survey from November 2, 2022 to February 1, 2023...

OBJECTIVE: To assess the perception of students, faculty, and previous lab coaches on a near-peer teaching model integrated into a skills-based laboratory. METHODS: As part of a longitudinal near-peer teaching experience, third professional year students are utilized as lab coaches in a skills-based laboratory course. Lab coaches deliver lectures, provide feedback, facilitate activities, and assist with class preparation spanning two semesters for first and second professional year students...

OBJECTIVE: To determine adjunct pharmacist preceptor perceptions of their precepting role related to three domains: motivation to precept, understanding the precepting role, and support for precepting. METHODS: An online cross-sectional survey of 2,429 adjunct preceptors for four schools of pharmacy was conducted. Participants ranked their agreement with 81 statements regarding the three domains, including eleven subdomains. RESULTS: Mean scores for the three domains were slightly below the positive response level, with lower scores found for the subdomains of workload, precepting norms, and extrinsic benefits/rewards...

OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of a virtual medication adherence training (VMAT) program on students' perceived confidence and perceived competency in delivering medication adherence services via telehealth. METHODS: This pilot pre-/post-observational study consisted of two subsequent sections: 1) four asynchronous self-study modules via Canvas (Instructure, Inc.) learning management system, and 2) two live application-based sessions involving virtual and telephonic standardized patients...

BACKGROUND: Artificial intelligence (AI) is a multidisciplinary science that aims to build software tools that mimic human intelligence. AI is revolutionizing pharmaceutical research and patient care. Hence, it is important to include AI in pharmacy education to prepare a competent workforce of pharmacists with skills in this area. OBJECTIVE: To integrate and utilize AI to teach core concepts in a medicinal chemistry course, and to increase the familiarity of pharmacy students with AI in pharmacy practice and drug development...

OBJECTIVE: Academic resilience, a critical determinant of academic achievement, is affected by various factors. There is a paucity of large-scale international assessments of academic resilience among pharmacy students. Therefore, this study aimed to assess academic resilience among pharmacy students in twelve countries and to evaluate factors associated with their academic resilience levels. METHODS: A cross-sectional online survey-based study was conducted among randomly selected pharmacy students in twelve countries: Egypt, Türkiye, Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Iraq, Jordan, Nigeria, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and the United Arab Emirates...

OBJECTIVE: To investigate preferences among university students in Gothenburg, Sweden for medicines that have a different environmental impact with respect to effect and explore to what extent having received information about pharmaceuticals' potential harm to the environment is associated with the stated preferences. METHODS: A survey was conducted among students in different study programs at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden. In all, 704 students received oral and written information about the study at the end of a lecture and were invited to take part (response rate: 83...

Ghosting, professionally and personally, occurs when there is an abrupt end to communication between two individuals without any explanation or when an individual does not follow through on commitments to others associated with their communication. The increase in the available communication channels and speed at which messages can now be transmitted between individuals is resulting in a greater incidence of ghosting or perceived ghosting in our colleges/schools of pharmacy. The impact of ghosting is the disruption of effective communication and communication strategies essential to the development of positive and thriving cultures and subcultures in our institutions...

OBJECTIVE: To identify social determinants of education (SDOE) among pharmacy students enrolled in the entry-level Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) program at the University of Colorado Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (CU SSPPS). METHODS: An original 28-item survey was developed and disseminated to 1st through 4th year students enrolled in the entry-level PharmD program at the CU SSPPS during the Spring 2023 semester. The survey evaluated student demographics, educational performance, and SDOE in six categories: physical health, psychosocial health, economic stability, self-motivation, social environment/community, and physical environment/community...

OBJECTIVE: To explore pharmacy students' perception of the content and pedagogical strategies used for the delivery of drug information (DI) training. METHODS: An explanatory sequential mixed-methods study was conducted among BSc Pharmacy and PharmD students at the College of Pharmacy, Qatar University (QU-CPH). The first phase consisted of a quantitative cross-sectional survey using a 34-item pretested questionnaire. The Donabedian framework guided the development of the questionnaire...

OBJECTIVES: This scoping review explores and assesses the extent of the literature on the current state of opioid-related training and education of student pharmacists and identifies areas for further research to improve the preparedness of future pharmacists in managing care for patients utilizing opioid medications. This review also examines and maps the literature as it relates to the four substance misuse educational content areas (legal/ethical issues; screening, treatment, and stigma; pharmacology and toxicology; psychosocial aspects) recommended by the 2020 AACP Special Committee on Substance Use and Pharmacy Education...

The objective of this article is threefold: 1. To strengthen the understanding of Medical Affairs (MA) among pharmacy professionals; 2. To provide greater visibility into the value experienced by educators, learners, and the practice of pharmacy across the healthcare ecosystem when MA learning opportunities are available; and 3. To provide a framework for organizations who seek to establish a MA experiential rotation. The authors collated information from published literature, anecdotal experience, and interviews with experiential education leaders from several colleges of pharmacy...

OBJECTIVE: To update the description of current objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) practices within pharmacy schools in the United States and identify barriers to OSCE implementation and expansion. METHODS: A survey was deployed to all accredited Doctor of Pharmacy programs within the United States. The survey was designed to collect information regarding the curricular mapping of OSCEs, OSCE design, OSCE delivery, assessment of OSCE performance, and barriers to OSCE implementation and expansion...

OBJECTIVES: To describe continuing professional development (CPD)-related continuing pharmacy education (CPE) activities from 2018 through 2023. METHODS: This was an exploratory study using CPE activities offered by US-based accredited providers from the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) Provider Web Tool. Activities were selected based on submission and expiration date, which included activities active from January 1st , 2018 to December 31st , 2023...

OBJECTIVE: To describe an evaluation of a generative language model tool to write examination questions for a new elective course focused on the interpretation of common clinical laboratory results being developed as an elective for students in a Bachelor of Science in Pharmaceutical Sciences program. METHODS: One hundred multiple choice questions were generated using a publicly available large language model for a course dealing with common laboratory values. Two independent evaluators with extensive training and experience in writing multiple choice questions evaluated each question for appropriate formatting, clarity, correctness, relevancy, and difficulty...

OBJECTIVES: This scoping review aims to identify and summarize the available literature on two-spirited, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, plus (2SLGBTQ+) interprofessional health education and to identify optimal methods of interprofessional training to improve healthcare professional competency for this patient population. METHODS: A search of Pubmed and Embase was conducted and supplemented with a manual search of reference lists from identified articles...

OBJECTIVE: To review implementation drivers of competency-based pharmacy education (CBPE) and provide recommendations for enablers. FINDINGS: Competency-based education is an emerging model in the health professions focusing on time-variable competency development and achievement compared to a time-bound, course-based, traditional model. CBPE is an outcomes-based organized framework of competencies enabling pharmacists to meet healthcare and societal needs. However, challenges need to be recognized and overcome for successful implementation of CBPE...

Introductory pharmacy practice experiences (IPPEs) are essential to exposing students to contemporary pharmacy practice and promoting advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) readiness. An IPPE curriculum should be sequenced and progressive, with IPPE experiences built upon each other and coordinated with the didactic curriculum. Pharmacy programs are faced with several internal and external challenges that can influence the design and implementation of their IPPE curriculum. Periodic IPPE curricular review is imperative as new challenges arise and existing challenges abate...