Enhancing Self-Care Consultation Skills in Pharmacy Education: Benefits of Virtual Patients and Artificial...

Virtual patients (VPs) and artificial intelligence (AI) are being implemented in pharmacy education across various countries in order to learn different techniques to improve communication skills, identify drug-related problems, assess the pharmacist's role in the self-medication process or assess students' knowledge acquisition. The objective of this study was to assess the benefits of integrating VPs and AI in pharmacy education, particularly their impact on pharmacy students' knowledge and skills in self-medication counselling. A literature search was conducted across PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science databases. Studies focused on the integration of VPs and AI tools in pharmacy education and their impact on students' knowledge, counselling and communication skills related to self-medication, were evaluated. Eligible studies were full-text, peer-reviewed research articles published in English. No restrictions were applied regarding publication year. A total of 857 articles were identified through electronic databases and 9 met the inclusion criteria. Six studies were conducted in the USA and one each in Portugal, Sweden and Indonesia. Most studies employed a pre-post-study design. Six studies utilized VP simulations, while the remaining three implemented AI-based tools. Key outcomes covered in analyzed articles included improvements in knowledge score, communication, and consultation skills, along with positive perceptions, including increased student satisfaction and confidence levels. Using VP simulations and AI tools in pharmacy education could positively impact students by enhancing their knowledge as well as their confidence and counselling skills.