An Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience in Application of Evidence-Based Policy

Abstract

Objective. To determine the impact of an advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) to develop skills needed to apply an evidence-based approach to population-level practice decisions. Design. A 4-week evidence-based medicine APPE was implemented that included active-learning techniques and online learning modules, participation in state drug-policy committee meetings, and completion of an evidence-based medicine review for a specific drug agent or class. Assessment. Students' mean score on application of principles related to biostatistics and information mastery on posttests increased 15.8% from pretest to posttest. Students' mean score on a 22-question information mastery quiz was 90.8%. Mean scores for course evaluation components ranged from 4.8 to 5.0 on a 5-point Likert scale. All respondents indicated they would recommend the APPE to other students.Conclusions. An APPE that incorporated content from active drug-policy committees increased students' evidence-based medicine skills and enhanced their understanding of, appreciation for, and confidence in evidence-based practice.Keywords: evidence-based medicine, advanced pharmacy practice experience, literature evaluation INTRODUCTIONApplying evidence-based medicine principles to patient care decisions ensures the conscientious, explicit, and judicious use of best evidence in practice. 1 Evidencebased medicine is the principle of incorporating information gained from the best available research evidence with clinical expertise and applying it to patient and policy decisions. 2,3 Healthcare providers face the daily challenge of providing the best possible care while controlling cost in today's environment of direct-to-consumer advertising and high-impact marketing. Therefore, pharmacy students must develop evaluative skills that differentiate therapeutic options with high-yield outcomes measures from those with inferred or surrogate endpoints.This course addresses curricular outcomes described in the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) Accreditation Standards and Guidelines for the Professional Program in Pharmacy under Standard 12, Professional Competencies and Outcome Expectations. ACPE calls for graduates to be competent to provide evidence-based patient-centered and population-based pharmacy care. Evidence-based practice and decisionmaking are specifically outlined within the clinical sciences content in the pharmacy practice and pharmacist-provided care, and literature evaluation and research design sections for curricular content. 4 Taking an evidence-based approach to practicing pharmaceutical care is one way to ensure that patients and healthcare providers are satisfied that efforts target a therapeutic outcome that is sensitive to the needs and desires of the patient.In addition to the widely practiced 5-step approach for pharmacists to provide drug information to patients and other professionals, 5 information mastery skills aid the health care provider in developing a systematic and rapid approach to identifying the most useful in...

Evaluation of an Evidence Based Practice Rotation for Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience in Response to MERS-Cov Epidemic as a Result of Temporary Hospital Closure

“…This finding was similar to previously published studies [5][6][7][8]. Hester et al incorporated literature evaluation exercises in a primary care advanced pharmacy practice rotation and concluded that it had increased the students' understanding and strengthened their therapeutic recommendations [5].…”

“…Hester et al incorporated literature evaluation exercises in a primary care advanced pharmacy practice rotation and concluded that it had increased the students' understanding and strengthened their therapeutic recommendations [5]. A 4-week evidence based medicine (EBM) APPE utilizing active learning techniques, on line modules and attendance of drug policy committee meetings and drug reviews increased the students' evidence based skills and practices [7].…”

“…Other published studies evaluated evidence based rotation implementation either as a course during pharmacy school or as a rotation during pharmacy or medical residencies [2,[4][5][6][7][8].…”

“…It also trains student pharmacists to be able to answer questions during patient care rounds or support an answer with evidence. There are limited published studies about implementation of EBP rotation into advanced pharmacy practice rotations [5][6][7][8].…”

A Longitudinal Evidence-Based Medicine Curriculum and Its Impact on the Attitudes and Perceptions of Student Pharmacists

“…33 ( [28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36] However, only one study examined the impact of a longitudinal EBM curriculum, and we previously reported our experience with integrating EBM into a didactic pharmacoeconomics course assignment. 37,38 Because little is known about the attitudes and perceptions of student pharmacists towards EBM, our objective was to describe our longitudinal EBM curriculum and to evaluate these aspects among student pharmacists after exposure to an EBM course that uses interactive pedagogical methods, along with a longitudinal EBM curriculum.…”