Education in pharmacoeconomics: an international multidisciplinary view

There is a global need for more training in pharmacoeconomics. Pharmacoeconomics is a relatively new discipline that draws from other more established disciplines; hence, multidisciplinary collaboration is recommended. Descriptions of opportunities for pharmacoeconomics education can be found in the literature and on websites, but research on the trends in pharmacoeconomics education is largely limited to training in US pharmacy schools. Although basic pharmacoeconomics concepts and methods can be standardised for different countries and cultures, specific applications and examples will differ by region. There are also different levels of educational need (awareness, application, conceptualisation) and different methods of receiving pharmacoeconomics education (short courses, internships, fellowships, graduate degrees). In order to assess educational goals, some educational programmes have moved toward the concept of developing and measuring 'learning outcomes', defined as the knowledge, skills and attitudes needed to fulfil the societal roles expected of the learner. This method can improve the standardisation of the educational process; however, there is still much work to be done in order to achieve real consensus on 'learning outcomes' in pharmacoeconomics.