A Job Analysis to Define the Role of the Pharmacy Preceptor

Abstract

Objective. To use a comprehensive job analysis to identify and describe the roles and responsibilities of pharmacist preceptors. Methods. After gathering input from local pharmacist preceptors, a task inventory questionnaire was created that included 92 tasks divided among nine domains related to the job of preceptors. The task inventory questionnaire was distributed to expert pharmacist preceptors in the United States, which were those who had been recognized for excellence in precepting by a national organization. Participants evaluated each task and determined whether they were responsible for the task, as well as the importance, difficulty, and frequency of each task. A composite score for each task was calculated based on a unique combination of these ratings. Descriptive statistics summarized the findings for each task and across the domains. Results. Nineteen pharmacist preceptors completed the task inventory questionnaire. The three most salient domains were professionalism (M541.9, SD512.9), communication (M537.0, SD511.7), and interpersonal skills (M537.0, SD510.3). The three most critical tasks related to professionalism were maintaining professional composure in stressful situations, demonstrating a commitment to service and the profession, and engaging in sound ethical and moral decision-making. Conclusion. This study represents the first attempt of using a job analysis to define pharmacist preceptor roles and responsibilities. More research is needed to fully understand the implications of these results, to understand how the relative significance of tasks may vary based on the population assessed (eg, learners and less experienced pharmacists), and to improve and validate the findings of the task inventory questionnaire developed in this study.

What do preceptors want? A mixed methods study exploring pharmacist preceptor perceptions of their training and support needs at a regional Australian University

“…As an educator, preceptors should supplement knowledge learnt in the classroom and facilitate the application of theory to the practice. For this purpose, preceptors should be orientated to the university curriculum and be confident in using effective teaching strategies to encourage students to reflect, think critically and problem solve (DeAngelis & Wolcott, 2019;Enderby et al, 2021;O'Sullivan et al, 2020). Familiarity with the pharmacy curriculum was rated lower in importance for preceptors in this study, which may be related to the high proportion of preceptors (47.3%) having studied at JCU and therefore already having a good knowledge of how the course is structured.…”

“…As an assessor, the preceptor is required to examine the performance of the student in the practice. A critical component of being an assessor is the provision of feedback, which enables the student to monitor their progress toward meeting their performance criteria (DeAngelis & Wolcott, 2019;Knott, Mylrea & Glass, 2020). This study suggested that preceptors should provide unbiased student assessment and feedback that is timely and constructive.…”

“…A recent study in the United States found that preceptor orientation and professional development strategies did not always meet the required Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) standard and that programmes varied widely (O'Sullivan et al, 2020). Furthermore, there remains an overall lack of published literature on the ideal elements of a training programme in terms of resource allocation, delivery mode, orientation and preceptor development strategies and supports (DeAngelis & Wolcott, 2019;O'Sullivan et al, 2020, Knott, Mylrea & Glass, 2020. A scoping review of preceptor training programmes in 2020 revealed that most published programmes originated in the United States and were developed for either undergraduate or postgraduate preceptors, with some programmes being general and some being specific to preceptors in community or hospital pharmacy.…”

Experiential Education in Pharmacy Curriculum: The Lebanese International University Model

“…DeAngelis and Wolcott described a preceptor model, in which three critical tasks were provided to the pharmacy interns by the preceptors in the training setting. These tasks are related to professionalism in stressful situations, commitment to service, and ethical and moral decision-making [ 25 ].…”

Preceptor Practice

“…Although no nursing preceptor practice analysis has been found, DeAngelis and Wolcott (2019) conducted a job analysis to determine the roles and responsibilities of pharmacist preceptors. A task inventory survey was developed from feedback from pharmacy preceptors and consisted of 92 tasks, representing nine practice domains: planning/logistics, intrapersonal, interpersonal, clinical knowledge, assessment, leadership, professionalism, teaching, and communication.…”