Third-Year Pharmacy Students’ Work Experiences and Attitudes

Objectives. To describe pharmacy students’ work experience for pay; examine student attitudes towards work; examine student perceptions of how pharmacist preceptors feel about their jobs; and determine how pharmacy student work environment influences career aspirations and whether or not gender or academic pathway have any influences. Methods. An electronic survey was administered to third-year doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) students at a Midwestern school of pharmacy over five consecutive years. Results. Four hundred eighty nine students (response rate = 61.0%) completed the electronic survey instrument. Over 90% reported working in a pharmacy by the time their advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPEs) began. Of these respondents, 67.4% reported working in a community pharmacy while 23.0% reported working in hospital inpatient pharmacy. Students working for independent pharmacies were most likely to feel that this type of practice site would offer an optimal work schedule and work environment for their career. Conclusions. Most students are working in community pharmacy practice. Having a fulfilling career and a desirable work schedule was the variable most strongly associated with optimal career choice. Conflict of Interest We declare no conflicts of interest or financial interests that the authors or members of their immediate families have in any product or service discussed in the manuscript, including grants (pending or received), employment, gifts, stock holdings or options, honoraria, consultancies, expert testimony, patents and royalties.     Type: Original Researc

Evolution of Preprofessional Pharmacy Curricula

Objectives. To examine changes in preprofessional pharmacy curricular requirements and trends, and determine rationales for and implications of modifications. Methods. Prerequisite curricular requirements compiled between 2006 and 2011 from all doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) programs approved by the Accreditation Council of Pharmacy Education were reviewed to ascertain trends over the past 5 years. An online survey was conducted of 20 programs that required either 3 years of prerequisite courses or a bachelor’s degree, and a random sample of 20 programs that required 2 years of prerequisites. Standardized telephone interviews were then conducted with representatives of 9 programs. Results. In 2006, 4 programs required 3 years of prerequisite courses and none required a bachelor’s degree; by 2011, these increased to 18 programs and 7 programs, respectively. Of 40 programs surveyed, responses were received from 28 (70%), 9 (32%) of which reported having increased the number of prerequisite courses since 2006. Reasons given for changes included desire to raise the level of academic achievement of students entering the PharmD program, desire to increase incoming student maturity, and desire to add clinical sciences and experiential coursework to the pharmacy curriculum. Some colleges and schools experienced a temporary decrease in applicants. Conclusions. The preprofessional curriculum continues to evolve, with many programs increasing the number of course prerequisites. The implications of increasing prerequisites were variable and included a perceived increase in maturity and quality of applicants and, for some schools, a temporary decrease in the number of applicants

Doctor of Pharmacy Students' Use of Personal Digital Assistants

Objectives. To describe the use of personal digital assistants (PDAs) by doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) students; determine the reliability of psychometric constructs that determine technology acceptance; and determine constructs that directly correlate with PDA use. Methods. A survey instrument was developed containing descriptive and psychometric items and administered to PharmD students at 2 universities. Results. Over half of new users (58.1%) and experienced users (51.3%) reported using their PDA at least weekly. Eighty-four percent of experienced users used their PDA at least weekly to look up drug information. The most reliable scales were perceived usefulness (a5 0.92), perceived ease of use (a5 0.89), and attitude towards behavior (a 5 0.84). Intention to use and self-reported use of PDAs were strongly correlated with perceived usefulness, attitude towards behavior, and compatibility. Conclusions. The majority of pharmacy students used their PDAs at least weekly and find them most useful for looking up drug information

Evolution of Preprofessional Pharmacy Curricula

Seiring dengan perkembangan teknologi secara massal, memungkinkan hadirnya komunitas-komunitas virtual yaitu sekumpulan masyarakat lokal yang mendunia. Komunitas virtual terdiri dari sekumpulan individu dunia maya yang memiliki minat yang sama terhadap suatu bidang. Barstard merupakan salah satu komunitas yang terbilang aktif menggunakan instagram sebagai media penyebaran informasinya. Foto dan video yang diunggah merupakan bentuk komunikasi nonverbal yang dilengkapi komunikasi verbal dalam bentuk caption, komentar, lokasi dan hashtag. Dalam penelitian ini dilakukan penelitian dengan pendekatan kualitatif. Riset kualitatif bertujuan untuk menjelaskan fenomena dengan sedalam-dalamnya melalui pengumpulan data sedalam-dalamnya. Penelitian ini menggunakan jenis penelitian Etnografi Virtual, sebuah metodologi penelitian yang mengharuskan peneliti melakukan penelitian secara online dan offline untuk mendapatkan data yang valid. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian dan pembahasan diketahui bahwa konsep diri anggota Lady Barstard secara Fisik menilai dirinya keren, secara Psikologis merasa percaya diri dan faktor yang mempengaruhi konsep dirinya adalah teman-teman dan komunitas yang berperan sebagai generalized others

Evolution of Preprofessional Pharmacy Curricula

Objectives. To examine changes in preprofessional pharmacy curricular requirements and trends, and determine rationales for and implications of modifications. Methods. Prerequisite curricular requirements compiled between 2006 and 2011 from all doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) programs approved by the Accreditation Council of Pharmacy Education were reviewed to ascertain trends over the past 5 years. An online survey was conducted of 20 programs that required either 3 years of prerequisite courses or a bachelor’s degree, and a random sample of 20 programs that required 2 years of prerequisites. Standardized telephone interviews were then conducted with representatives of 9 programs. Results. In 2006, 4 programs required 3 years of prerequisite courses and none required a bachelor’s degree; by 2011, these increased to 18 programs and 7 programs, respectively. Of 40 programs surveyed, responses were received from 28 (70%), 9 (32%) of which reported having increased the number of prerequisite courses since 2006. Reasons given for changes included desire to raise the level of academic achievement of students entering the PharmD program, desire to increase incoming student maturity, and desire to add clinical sciences and experiential coursework to the pharmacy curriculum. Some colleges and schools experienced a temporary decrease in applicants. Conclusions. The preprofessional curriculum continues to evolve, with many programs increasing the number of course prerequisites. The implications of increasing prerequisites were variable and included a perceived increase in maturity and quality of applicants and, for some schools, a temporary decrease in the number of applicants