An innovative elective course in anticoagulation management

To develop and implement an elective pharmacy course in anticoagulation management and assess student learning.

Students participated in active-learning activities including evaluating a patient receiving outpatient or inpatient anticoagulation therapy, participating in a team project and presentation, and completing a "living with anticoagulation" assignment that included modeling both the health care provider's and the patient's role.

A precourse and postcourse standardized examination on anticoagulation along with a short answer midterm and final examination were administered. Performance between precourse and postcourse examination improved by approximately 25%, and 90% of students scored ≥ 90% on the final examination. Reflective narratives provided support that students found the "living with anticoagulation" assignment a valuable learning experience which developed empathy towards patients.

An elective course in anticoagulation management that included multiple active-learning assignments was successful in increasing both students' knowledge and empathy.