Student confidence with oncology pharmacy competencies.

Area of Science:

• Pharmacy Education
• Oncology Pharmacy
• Pedagogical Methods

Background:

• Oncology pharmacy requires specialized skills and knowledge.
• Traditional didactic instruction may not fully prepare students for complex oncology pharmacy practice.
• Innovative teaching methods are needed to enhance student competency.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of a flipped classroom approach on first-year pharmacy students' confidence in performing oncology pharmacy competencies.
• To assess changes in confidence levels before and after completing an oncology didactic module.

Main Methods:

• A pre- and post-survey design was employed with first-year doctor of pharmacy students.
• Surveys assessed prior experience, interest, and confidence in 13 oncology pharmacy competencies.
• The Applied Science and Therapeutics (AST) oncology module utilized a flipped classroom format.

Main Results:

• A total of 116 students completed the pre-survey and 35 completed the post-survey.
• Students demonstrated statistically significant increases in confidence across all measured oncology pharmacy competencies (p < 0.0001).
• The most substantial gains in confidence were observed in chemotherapy dose calculations, patient education, and drug-drug interactions.

Conclusions:

• Flipped classroom instruction effectively enhanced student confidence in oncology pharmacy competencies.
• Competencies such as cancer screening, risk factors, and chemotherapy preparation/dispensing require further emphasis in instruction.
• Future research should investigate the application of these competencies in both classroom and experiential settings.