Availability of Didactic and Experiential Learning Opportunities in Veterinary Practice at US Pharmacy Programs

Area of Science:

• Pharmacy Education
• Veterinary Pharmacy

Background:

• The integration of veterinary pharmacy into pharmacy curricula is growing.
• Understanding the current landscape of veterinary pharmacy education is crucial for future curriculum development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the availability of didactic and experiential learning opportunities in veterinary pharmacy within US pharmacy programs.

Main Methods:

• A 23-item questionnaire was distributed to 141 US pharmacy programs via American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy listservs.
• The Fisher exact test was employed to analyze associations between program characteristics and veterinary pharmacy offerings.
• Data analysis was performed using SPSS version 26.

Main Results:

• A 61% response rate was achieved (86/141 programs).
• Only 27% of programs offered a didactic veterinary pharmacy course, while 60% provided experiential rotations.
• Programs affiliated with veterinary schools were more likely to offer both didactic and experiential veterinary pharmacy opportunities.

Conclusions:

• Experiential veterinary pharmacy opportunities are twice as common as didactic courses in US pharmacy programs.
• There is a significant need for enhanced didactic veterinary pharmacy curriculum development.
• Increased exposure to veterinary pharmacy is recommended for pharmacy students due to its growing presence in community pharmacy settings.