ABSTRACT
Electronic health records (EHRs) are integral to contemporary pharmacy practice. The use of EHRs and associated skill development in curricula across pharmacy education is variable. Skills-based courses in the Doctor of Pharmacy curriculum are ideal areas to develop these competencies and integrate EHR use and skills with the Pharmacists Patient Care Process. Consideration should be given by each school and college of pharmacy for having an EHR curriculum embedded within skills-based courses to prepare students for advanced pharmacy practice experiences as well as professional practice after graduation. A consensus on what skills or competencies shouldbe consistentlyincludedinpharmacy curricula shouldbe developed across pharmacy education to increase consistency in the delivery of EHR skills education and assessment. Emphasis on EHR skills and incorporation of them into national pharmacy education standards would help further guide development and assessment, as well as ensure new pharmacists are on the cutting edge of patient care and technology. Keywords: electronic health record, clinical skills, digital, technology
ABSTRACT
Background: In Spring 2020 many academic institutions transitioned to remote learning in response to the developing COVID-19 pandemic. These changes affected skills-based training, as schools of pharmacy were forced to transition traditionally in-person assessments to a remote setting. The purpose of this article is to describe the experience of pharmacy skills lab coordinators when transitioning summative skills-based assessments (SSBA). Methods: A web-based survey instrument administered through QualtricsXM was sent to all institutions in the Big Ten Academic Alliance-Performance Based Assessment Collaborative. Only one member from each institution completed the survey on behalf of the institution. The survey consisted of four sections: changes made to skills evaluated; changes made to the delivery of those evaluations; challenges to and strategies used by the skills lab program when switching to remote learning; and recommendations for incorporating remote learning within future SSBAs. Survey respondents were invited to participate in an optional unstructured interview regarding survey answers. Results: Nine of ten invited institutions responded to the survey. Of the nine respondents, three participated in the post-survey interview. Overall, 79.5% (93/117) of skills planned to be assessed were assessed with or without modification, with 8.5% (10/117) of skills canceled and 10.3% (12/117) of skills assessments postponed. The most common challenges mentioned were the lack of preparation time, inability to assess certain skills virtually, and student barriers. The most common recommendations made were to prioritize lab components and incorporate flexibility in planning and scheduling. Discussion: The results indicate that most skills were still assessed during the Spring 2020 semester. Though the transition to remote learning was challenging and unique for each institution, common strategies and recommendations identified here provide opportunities for academics to analyze and prioritize learning objectives and to rethink how to develop and deliver SSBAs as remote assessments.