Impact of a debate on pharmacy students' views of online pharmacy practice

Abstract

Few data have been collected on the use of debates as part of healthcare professional training. The impact of a debate on how pharmacy students feel about online pharmacy practice is described.

Using Debate to Teach Pharmacy Students About Ethical Issues

“…The results of this project are consistent with that of the wider literature relating to debates. [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30] One researcher reported that observing students' debates was "like watching students spread their intellectual wings," without any real input needed from staff members. 50 About half of the students in the current study thought that their critical-thinking and rebuttal skills improved as a result of the debate experience.…”

“…19,24,26,27,[44][45][46] Although ethical approval was not needed for implementation and evaluation of the debates, as was the case with a similar study, 47 the debates were discussed at relevant school educational subgroups, and necessary documentation was completed. These steps are standard practice before changes to teaching in the degree program can be introduced.…”

“…12 Debates have been used in numerous university subject areas, including economics, education, engineering, marketing, psychology, and various healthcarerelated programs such as dentistry, medicine, nursing, occupational therapy, and pharmacy. [13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29] However, the reported use of debates in pharmacy education is limited, particularly in the United Kingdom. 19,26,27,30 Many studies report positively on this method of teaching, showing that debates are an effective way to introduce complex and controversial issues into teaching, 22,31,32 to enhance learning and understanding of course content, 16,19,21,23,29,30,33 and to enable active engagement in learning.…”

“…20, 34 They have also been associated with improving communication [17][18][19]26,32,34 and empathy, 35 critical-thinking ability, 14,15,17,19,23,27,28,[36][37][38][39] literature searching, and application of evidence, 14,20,24,25 teamwork, 15,19,26,18 and self-directed learning. 24,40 The aim of the current project was to create, implement, and evaluate debate as a method of teaching pharmacy students about ethical issues.…”

The use of debates as an active learning tool in a college of pharmacy healthcare delivery course

“…11,[14][15][16][17] Different debate formats, live or online, individual or team-based, and different assessments of the utility of this active learning tool have been described in the literature. [11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19] Debates have been used effectively to stimulate interest, promote active class participation, and enhance presentation, research, and critical thinking skills in professional programs. [11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19] Literature describing the use of live student debates to deliver a significant amount of content previously delivered by lecture in required pharmacy courses, however, is limited.…”