A Simulated Learning Environment for Teaching Medicine Dispensing Skills.

OBJECTIVE: To develop an authentic simulation of the professional practice dispensary context for students to develop their dispensing skills in a risk-free environment. DESIGN: A development team used an Agile software development method to create MyDispense, a web-based simulation. Modeled on virtual learning environments elements, the software employed widely available standards-based technologies to create a virtual community pharmacy environment. Assessment. First-year pharmacy students who used the software in their tutorials, were, at the end of the second semester, surveyed on their prior dispensing experience and their perceptions of MyDispense as a tool to learn dispensing skills. CONCLUSION: The dispensary simulation is an effective tool for helping students develop dispensing competency and knowledge in a safe environment.

The Pharmville community: a curriculum resource platform integrating context and theory.

OBJECTIVE: 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. DESIGN: 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. ASSESSMENT: 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. CONCLUSION: Pharmville is an instructional resource that links professionalism and academic study, and provides context for student learning.

Evaluation of a community pharmacy-based intervention for improving patient adherence to antihypertensives: a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: The majority of patients using antihypertensive medications fail to achieve their recommended target blood pressure. Poor daily adherence with medication regimens and a lack of persistence with medication use are two of the major reasons for failure to reach target blood pressure. There is no single intervention to improve adherence with antihypertensives that is consistently effective. Community pharmacists are in an ideal position to promote adherence to chronic medications. This study aims to test a specific intervention package that could be integrated into the community pharmacy workflow to enable pharmacists to improve patient adherence and/or persistence with antihypertensive medications--Hypertension Adherence Program in Pharmacy (HAPPY). METHODS/DESIGN: The HAPPY trial is a multi-centre prospective randomised controlled trial. Fifty-six pharmacies have been recruited from three Australian states. To identify potential patients, a software application (MedeMine CVD) extracted data from a community pharmacy dispensing software system (FRED Dispense). The pharmacies have been randomised to either 'Pharmacist Care Group' (PCG) or 'Usual Care Group' (UCG). To check for 'Hawthorne effect' in the UCG, a third group of patients 'Hidden Control Group' (HCG) will be identified in the UCG pharmacies, which will be made known to the pharmacists at the end of six months. Each study group requires 182 patients. Data will be collected at baseline, three and six months in the PCG and at baseline and six months in the UCG. Changes in patient adherence and persistence at the end of six months will be measured using the self-reported Morisky score, the Tool for Adherence Behaviour Screening and medication refill data. DISCUSSION: To our knowledge, this is the first research testing a comprehensive package of evidence-based interventions that could be integrated into the community pharmacy workflow to enable pharmacists to improve patient adherence and/or persistence with antihypertensive medications. The unique features of the HAPPY trial include the use of MedeMine CVD to identify patients who could potentially benefit from the service, control for the 'Hawthorne effect' in the UCG and the offer of the intervention package at the end of six months to patients in the UCG, a strategy that is expected to improve retention. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry ACTRN12609000705280.

A pharmacy preregistration course using online teaching and learning methods.

OBJECTIVE: To design and evaluate a preregistration course utilizing asynchronous online learning as the primary distance education delivery method. DESIGN: Online course components including tutorials, quizzes, and moderated small-group asynchronous case-based discussions were implemented. Online delivery was supplemented with self-directed and face-to-face learning. ASSESSMENT: Pharmacy graduates who had completed the course in 2004 and 2005 were surveyed. The majority felt they had benefited from all components of the course, and that online delivery provided benefits including increased peer support, shared learning, and immediate feedback on performance. A majority of the first cohort reported that the workload associated with asynchronous online discussions was too great. The course was altered in 2005 to reduce the online component. Participant satisfaction improved, and most felt that the balance of online to face-to-face delivery was appropriate. CONCLUSION: A new pharmacy preregistration course was successfully implemented. Online teaching and learning was well accepted and appeared to deliver benefits over traditional distance education methods once workload issues were addressed.

Community pharmacists' preferences for continuing education delivery in Australia.

INTRODUCTION: New technologies such as the Internet offer an increasing number of options for the delivery of continuing education (CE) to community pharmacists. Many of these options are being utilized to overcome access- and cost-related problems. This paper identifies learning preferences of Australian community pharmacists for CE and identifies issues with the integration of these into contemporary models of CE delivery. METHODS: Four focus group teleconferences were conducted with practicing community pharmacists (n = 15) using a semistructured format and asking generally about their CE and continuing professional development (CPD) experiences. RESULTS: Pharmacists reported preferences for CE that were very closely aligned to the principles of adult learning. There was a strong preference for interactive and multidisciplinary CE. Engaging in CPD was seen as valuable in promoting reflective learning. DISCUSSION: These results suggest that pharmacists have a strong preference for CE that is based on adult learning principles. Professional organizations should take note of this and ensure that new CE formats do not compromise the ability of pharmacists to engage in interactive, multidisciplinary, and problem-based CE. Equally, the role of attendance-based CE in maintaining peer networks should not be overlooked.