Objectives: To determine if facilitating small group sessions impacts student facilitator confidence in utilizing motivational interviewing (MI) skills and perceived skills. Method: Pharmacy students are often utilized in educational settings to facilitate or assist with courses, but little is known how this impacts outcomes. Six P3 students underwent a two-day MI training course as well as small group facilitation training. After IRB approval, the students were randomly assigned to a small group of P2 pharmacy students in a Cardiology Module and asked to facilitate practice of MI skills over 4 hours. The student facilitators completed a pre-post instrument, which contained 6-point, Likert-type items assessing their confidence (19-items) and perceived (13-items) MI skills. Differences between pre- and post-surveys were assessed using a Wilcoxon test. Results: There were significant increases in facilitator confidence in using silence (p50.038), eliciting change talk (p50.039), helping patients set achievable goals (p50.023), assessing readiness to change (p50.014), and confidence in using MI skills in a case scenario involving hypertension (p50.039). Additionally, there was a statistically significant increase in facilitator assessed ability to use reflective listening (p50.046) and summarize what patients are saying (p50.038). The remaining 25 survey items showed no change between pre-and post-survey. Implications: Participation as a facilitator has a positive impact on student confidence and ability to use some aspects of MI skills. By using pharmacy students as facilitators, it can provide an outlet for students to develop communication and facilitation skills that will be needed in future practice
