A Single Academic Site Study of Five Years Evaluating Pharmacy Students' Palliative Care Clinical Reasoning Using...

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Pharmacy Practice
• Palliative Care

Background:

• Palliative care education is crucial for pharmacy training.
• Assessing the impact of specialized courses on student skills is essential for curriculum development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of a Pain and Palliative Care elective didactic course.
• To assess the impact on clinical reasoning skills among Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) students.

Main Methods:

• A 5-year prospective study (2018-2023) involving 130 third-year PharmD students.
• Utilized Script Concordance Test (SCT) for pre- and post-course clinical reasoning assessment.
• Course covered opioid management, procedural pain, and end-of-life care.

Main Results:

• Statistically significant improvement in SCT scores post-course (P=0.04), with a mean increase of 0.09.
• The 5-year cohort's average score (0.56) was higher than a previous multisite cohort (0.50).
• Item analysis identified specific areas for curriculum enhancement, including bowel obstruction and CYP interactions.

Conclusions:

• The palliative care elective effectively enhances clinical reasoning in pharmacy students.
• Findings support the need for curriculum refinement to address identified knowledge gaps.
• Specialized education is vital for comprehensive palliative care training in pharmacy.