A Pilot Study to Evaluate Clinical Competence in Junior Grade Pharmacy Practitioners

Authors

  • G. M. Goldsmith Barts and the London NHS Trust, Whitechapel E1 1BB, UK
  • I. P. Bates School of Pharmacy, University of London, London WC1N 1AX, UK
  • J. G. Davies School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences, University of Brighton, Brighton BN2 4GK, UK
  • D. McRobbie Pharmacy Department, St Thomas’ Hospital, London WE1 7EL, UK
  • D. G. Webb London Region Clinical Pharmacy, Northwick Park and St Marks Hospitals, Harrow HA1 3UJ, UK

Keywords:

Competence, Competency, Fitness for purpose, Assessment

Abstract

This pilot project investigated pharmacists’ performance, using a previously designed and evaluated competency assessment grid, over a 12 week period in eight active and one control sites. At baseline and 12 weeks later, assessors defined the clinical service provision “expected” and then assessed junior pharmacists’ service against these specifications. The observed and expected competencies for each task were then compared. A number of assessors from the active sites were interviewed to determine the ease of use, the process adopted and the time taken to carry out the assessment of a student.

 

Over the 12 week period students in the active group (n 5 24) showed a significant improvement in their ability to perform key tasks in all but one area whilst there was no significant change in performance in the control group (n 5 4). Evidence indicated that a variety of approaches were used when carrying out assessments using the grids by the five assessors interviewed. Additionally, the effects of using the grid on the assessment process had a range of organisational benefits across the active sites, highlighting the flexibility of the grids in diverse departments. The results indicate that the competency assessment grids can detect a change in pharmacists’ performance and that this might reflect the pharmacists’ awareness of the behaviours being assessed.

References

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How to Cite

Goldsmith, G. M., Bates, I. P., Davies, J. G., McRobbie, D., & Webb, D. G. (2018). A Pilot Study to Evaluate Clinical Competence in Junior Grade Pharmacy Practitioners. Pharmacy Education, 3(2). Retrieved from https://pharmacyeducation.fip.org/pharmacyeducation/article/view/29

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Section

Research Article