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An elective course in information mastery.
Daniel Longyhore1, Kimberly Ference, Barbara Nanstiel
1Wilkes University, Pharmacy Practice, 84 West South Street, Wilkes-Barre, PA 18766, USA. daniel.longyhore@wilkes.edu
American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education
|April 27, 2011
Summary
An elective course enhanced pharmacy students' information mastery skills, improving their ability to find and apply evidence-based medicine for better patient care. This training is crucial for effective evidence-based practice.
Area of Science:
- Pharmacy Education
- Evidence-Based Practice
- Information Literacy
Background:
- Effective evidence-based practice (EBP) in pharmacy requires robust information mastery skills.
- Pharmacy students need targeted training to identify information needs and formulate evidence-based answers.
- Current curricula may not fully address the complexities of information retrieval and synthesis for clinical decision-making.
Purpose of the Study:
- To design and implement an elective course focused on information mastery for pharmacy students.
- To assess the impact of this course on students' ability to identify information needs.
- To evaluate the effectiveness of the course in improving the formulation of clinically relevant, evidence-based answers.
Main Methods:
- A 15-week elective course on information mastery was offered to third-year Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) students.
- The course covered essential knowledge and skills for applying information mastery in EBP.
- Pre- and post-course surveys assessed changes in knowledge, confidence, and familiarity with EBP.
Main Results:
- Post-course surveys showed increased student knowledge, confidence, and familiarity with information mastery and EBP.
- Students who completed the elective demonstrated superior search strategies and evidence-based answers compared to non-participants.
- This improvement was observed in both third-year (P3) and fourth-year (P4) students who took the course.
Conclusions:
- An elective course in information mastery significantly improved pharmacy students' understanding and application of EBP principles.
- The course enhanced students' ability to effectively navigate and utilize information resources for clinical decision-making.
- Information mastery training is a valuable component of pharmacy education for fostering evidence-based practice.
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