Pharmacy Students’ Attitudes Toward a Required Public Health Course and Developing a Public Health Program

Abstract

Objective. To determine pharmacy students' attitudes towards a required public health course and developing a public health program. Method. Two hundred ten first-year pharmacy students enrolled in a public health course at a large private pharmacy school were surveyed. A 24-item adjective rating scale and a 10-item scale were used to measure students' attitudes towards the course and developing a public health program. Results. Of 198 respondents, two-thirds found the course to be extremely or very appealing, of practical value, and only slightly demanding and difficult. The majority of the students indicated that establishing a public health program would be an opportunity to help the community and make a difference. Few students indicated that it would be a poor use of time or an example of busy work. Conclusion. Pharmacy students had positive attitudes towards a required public health course and developing a public health program. Strategies to mold positive attitudes into actual behaviors of engaging in public health activities are needed.

Pharmacy students' perspectives on a PharmD/MPH dual degree program at a large metropolitan school of pharmacy

“…While there are some data to suggest pharmacy students have positive attitudes towards public health courses and public health programs as part of their required curriculum there are limited published studies about students’ perception regarding dual degree programs at schools and colleges of pharmacy 14,1617,18. From a pharmacy education perspective, the findings of this study, which suggest that students exhibited a positive attitude towards developing a dual degree program, are encouraging.…”

Designing a Master of Public Health Degree Within a Department of Pharmacy Practice

“…This finding is supported by a study in which a majority of pharmacy students found public health courses to be extremely appealing and believed that establishing a public health program provided an opportunity to make a difference and be engaged in the community. 19 …”

Pharmacy student perceptions of public health service roles and responsibilities

“…There are other, but few, reports describing pharmacy student perceptions of public health in the context of content delivered in their curriculum. Both American and Malaysian first‐year students were overwhelmingly supportive of a required public health course at their respective colleges of pharmacy and agreed that knowledge gained in their public health course would be required for their future pharmacy practice and have a positive impact on their community [20,21] . Although our programme does not currently contain a distinct course, formal familiarity with public health subject matter did not appear to be a necessary precursor to positive perceptions, even among first‐year pharmacy students who had limited exposure to pharmacy contexts at the time of the survey.…”