Evaluation of Elective Posting on Adverse Drug Reaction and Pharmacovigilance under Competency-based Medical Education Curriculum among Undergraduates: A New Step in Medical Education

Abstract

Context: The revised competency-based medical education, the students of 3rd-year part I MBBS are required to undergo elective postings of 1 month based on the student’s needs and choice. Aims: This study was undertaken to evaluate the outcome of elective posting of pharmacovigilance and adverse drug reaction (ADR) reporting as a new teaching tool in pharmacology among 3rd-year part I MBBS students. Settings and Design: The students undergoing the elective posting of pharmacovigilance and ADR reporting were evaluated for their knowledge, completeness score (out of 10) of ADRs reported, and their feedback with respect to the posting, in a pretested questionnaire. Subjects and Methods: It was a descriptive cross-sectional type conducted in the Pharmacology Department of Dr. Balasaheb Vikhe Patil Rural Medical College and Dr. Vitthalrao Vikhe Patil Pravara Rural Hospital, Loni. Results: Six students participated in the study, who reported 96 ADRs. Most of the ADRs (39, 40.6%) were reported immediately after their appearance. The average completeness score of the ADRs reported was 9.44 ± 0.41. The students gave an average score of 1.2 for overall experience of the posting (1 – best and 5 – worst). Conclusions: The elective posting with pharmacovigilance and ADR reporting module had a positive impact on the quality of ADR reporting in terms of completeness, causality assessment as well as time of reporting. The students felt confident in reporting ADRs and reflected positively toward the training module.