Evaluation of a competency-based CPD programme for pharmacists on asthma care: a feasibility study

Competency-based education (CBE) approaches in pharmacy education has drawn increasing attention. However, the adoption of CBE in Continuing Professional Development (CPD) design especially on asthma care remains underreported. This study aimed to assess the feasibility of a CBE-informed CPD programme designed for improving asthma care for children. A CPD programme guided by the CBE approach comprising of 4 sessions of didactic lectures and interactive inhaler workshops was implemented between April 6 to 27 2024 in Macao. An evaluation tool set to test the pre- and post-lecture knowledge assessment, inhaler technique, impact on practice, and overall satisfaction was completed by the participants. About 15% of registered pharmacists involved in direct-to-patient-care attended the CPD programme (n = 88), of whom 81 participated in the study. Significant improvement in short-term knowledge was recorded when comparing the overall proportion of correct answers pre- and post-training (50.9% vs 66.5%, p < 0.05). By the end of the inhaler workshop, the proportion of participants performed all inhaler steps correctly were 88.7% for metered dose inhaler, 80.8% for turbuhaler, 76.0% for accuhaler, and 71.2% for ellipta. Participants self-reported an enhanced level of confidence, willingness, and professional recognition in the provision of pharmaceutical care for the patients upon completion of the CPD. Over 96% of the participants were satisfied with the overall design of the CPD programme. The study demonstrates that the CBE-informed CPD programme is feasible and can improve pharmacist's competence in asthma management. The CBE approach is worth further adoption to improve the performance of CPD programme for pharmacists.