Reflective Practice and Its Implications for Pharmacy Education

Abstract

Pharmacy students require critical-thinking and problem-solving skills to integrate theory learned in the classroom with the complexities of practice, yet many pharmacy students fall short of acquiring these skills.1-2 Reflective practice activities encourage learning from the student's own experiences and those of others, and offer a possible solution for the integration of knowledge-based curricula with the ambiguities of practice, as well as enhance communication and collaboration within a multidisciplinary team. Although reflective practices have been embraced elsewhere in health professions education, their strengths and shortcomings need to be considered when implementing such practices into pharmacy curricula. This review provides an overview of the evolution of theories related to reflective practice, critically examines the use of reflective tools (such as portfolios and blogs), and discusses the implications of implementing reflective practices in pharmacy education.

The Social Psychology of Biased Self-Assessment

“…For example, educators have routinely used reflective practice in an attempt to improve student's critical thinking and problem skills. 100,101 This manuscript, however, is primarily concerned with efficacy of reflecting on one's attitudes and motivations as a way to decrease self-biases.…”

Impact of Instruction and Feedback on Reflective Responses during an Ambulatory Care Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience

“…1,6 One way to develop as a professional successful in such scenarios is to practice as a reflective practitioner. 1,14 Reflective practices have been a focus for the training of other health care professionals and only more recently have become a key component in the curriculum for pharmacy students. 10 One cited shortcoming of the current use of reflection activities in pharmacy curricula is the challenge of assessment.…”

“…10 Reflection exercises have been readily implemented into doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) curricula, but challenges and questions still need to be answered regarding the effectiveness of such activities in developing reflective practitioners. [11][12][13][14] One commonly cited difficulty with these exercises is the challenge of assessing the quality and/or level of the reflection. 14 Commonly, the literature describes reflection activities compiled in a portfolio and some level of assessment and feedback given to students, typically in the form of a structured rubric that rates the general quality of the work.…”

Assessing a Longitudinal Reflection Curriculum: A Case Study Of Student Self-Awareness Expressed Through Rotation Goal Achievement

“…While the affective domain may be a recent addition to pharmacy education standards, the integration of reflective practice into professional development has been established in the health professions education literature, including pharmacy. [2][3][4][5][6] The revised CAPE outcomes echo the established philosophy that engaging in critical reflection is important to health care practitioners, who must adapt to a changing work environment while maintaining their individual expertise. Many aspects and terms associated with reflection and reflective practitioners have been offered in the literature.…”

“…Many aspects and terms associated with reflection and reflective practitioners have been offered in the literature. [4][5] Evidence suggests reflective practice may improve problem solving skills, critical thinking, professional life-long learning, and possibly reduce errors in judgment and clinical decisions. 3,7 Reflection is also a key aspect of the continuous professional development (CPD) cycle, which has been Corresponding author: Eric H. Gilliam, PharmD University of Colorado Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Email: Eric.Gilliam@ucdenver.edu; Phone: 303-724-8327 employed to aid in practitioner development at all levels of pharmacy training.…”