Implementing a specialty pharmacy course within a professional pharmacy curriculum

Specialty pharmacy is an important area of pharmacy practice where patients who are prescribed a growing number of specialty drugs receive specialized care, including: benefits investigation, financial support, side effect management, and adherence assessment. As these specialty medications continue to emerge, it is important for pharmacy students to have knowledge of this specialized practice and awareness of the opportunities that exist in this area. The objective is to describe the development of a specialty pharmacy elective course to meet this educational need.

A one-credit specialty pharmacy elective course was created for second and third-year pharmacy students. Content experts with a variety of clinical and administrative specialty pharmacy expertise led student lectures and topic discussions. Students were assessed for baseline specialty pharmacy knowledge, knowledge at the completion of the course, and satisfaction with the course.

Student knowledge of specialty pharmacy practice increased 27.7% when comparing baseline to post-course test scores. Students evaluated the new course positively with recommendations that the course could benefit by being expanded by an additional credit.

The development of a specialty pharmacy elective course within a college of pharmacy curriculum improved student knowledge of specialty pharmacy practice and was well-received by students who enrolled in the course. Given the complexity and growing importance of specialty pharmacy in practice, this type of course should be considered by other colleges of pharmacy.