A drug information center module to train pharmacy students in evidence-based practice

Area of Science:

• Pharmacy Education
• Evidence-Based Medicine
• Drug Information Science

Background:

• Pharmacy students require robust training in evidence-based medicine (EBM) to ensure safe and effective patient care.
• Drug Information Centers play a crucial role in providing evidence-based information to healthcare professionals.
• Developing effective training modules is essential for imparting critical appraisal and information retrieval skills.

Purpose of the Study:

• To implement and evaluate a drug information center training module for teaching evidence-based medicine principles to pharmacy students.
• To assess pharmacy students' satisfaction with the training module and their learning experience.

Main Methods:

• A 5-week training module was developed using past requests from a university Drug Information Center.
• Students were instructed on information search strategies and critical analysis of scientific literature.
• Assignments increased in complexity over the module duration.

Main Results:

• 121 pharmacy students participated in the training between August 2009 and July 2010.
• A voluntary assessment form was completed by 67 students (55.4%), with predominantly positive feedback.
• Common student dissatisfaction (52.2%) was related to computer laboratory performance; 11 students recommended curriculum integration.

Conclusions:

• The drug information center training module proved effective in teaching evidence-based medicine to pharmacy students.
• Further research is warranted to evaluate the long-term application of learned skills in pharmacy practice.