Implementation of a Capstone Pharmacotherapeutics Course in the Entry-level Doctor of Pharmacy Program
Keywords:
Pharmacotherapeutics, Capstone course, Doctor of pharmacy program, Pharmaceutical careAbstract
This project was to implement a ”capstone” pharma- cotherapeuticscourse to: (1) Developstudents’ abilityin assemblingknowledgefrom previouscourses; (2)Expose students to different aspects of pharmacypractice. The course consisted of 3-h lecture, 1-h recitation and 1-h group project per week. Topics covered include: patient managementissues in ambulatorycare, critical care, long term care and hospice care, and providing pharrnaceu- ticalconsultation.Studentswere dividedintogroupsand assigned projects to complete and present towards the end of the semester. Projects included developing drug formulary kits, medication utilizationcriteria, education symposiums and providing medical-legal and market- ing consultation. Overall, students performed well in the course (class average 84%). Students provided neutral feedback to whether the course had achieved its objectives. More assessment in problem-solving skills and student feedback needs to be obtained in order to justify whether this course helps students to apply the growing body of pharmaceuticalknowledge.