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Applying Entrustable professional activities to prescription verification activities in two skills-based laboratory
Emily A Miller1, Tosin David2, Rachel A Koenig3
1Virginia Commonwealth University School of Pharmacy, 410 North 12th Street, PO Box 980533, Richmond, VA 23298-0533, United States.
Currents in Pharmacy Teaching & Learning
|August 1, 2022
Summary
Pharmacy schools assess prescription verification skills using Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs). Most students passed initial assessments, with remediation available for those needing improvement in this key pharmacy skill.
Area of Science:
- Pharmacy Education
- Pharmacist Skills Assessment
Background:
- Prescription verification is a critical practice-ready skill for pharmacy graduates.
- Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) provide a framework for assessing practice-ready skills.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe and compare two institutions' methods for assessing prescription verification.
- To align these assessments with the Practice Manager domain of the Core EPAs.
Main Methods:
- Two pharmacy schools (VCU and UMES) implemented skills-based laboratory assessments for prescription verification.
- Assessments incorporated elements of law, medication label, and dispensing accuracy, with built-in errors.
Main Results:
- The majority of students passed the high-stakes assessments on the first attempt (74.5%–77.5%).
- Lower performance on initial assessments (10% VCU, 2% UMES) necessitated reassessment.
- All students achieved a minimum entrustment level of 3 upon reassessment.
Conclusions:
- Institutions can employ different assessment techniques for prescription verification while ensuring EPA competency.
- Faculty should define expected student entrustment levels for prescription verification prior to practice experiences.
