Development of progressive oral presentations in a therapeutics course series

To develop and implement a series of progressive evidence-based, oral presentation activities within the therapeutics series to strengthen interprofessional oral communication and literature evaluation skills.

A step-wise progression of oral presentations was created to establish interprofessional communication skills and reinforce such skills in successive modules. Students progressed from a basic oral presentation to a brief clinical trial presentation, followed by a full journal club, culminating with a therapeutic debate. Guidelines and assessment tools were developed for each presentation focusing on style, content and organization, and analytic approach. Feedback was obtained from students and faculty members through the administration of survey instruments at the midpoint of advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPE).

The majority of students successfully completed each oral presentation. Most felt prepared for APPE presentations due to increased Microsoft PowerPoint skills, literature exposure/evaluation, and comfort/confidence in presenting before an audience. Faculty members stated that the innovation organized students' thoughts and increased presentation clarity, resulting in less need to offer student assistance during APPEs.

Our progressive approach to oral presentations has been successful and well received by students and faculty members. Our innovation has fostered oral interprofessional communication skills in our pharmacy students, and we will continue to utilize this approach.