RPS Conference 2010, Abstracts 2010 - Royal Pharmaceutical Society

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Does learning the “pure” science elements of a pharmacy degree in a clinical setting
better prepare students for their professional practice? Bridging the theory-practice
divide.
Nicholas Freestone, Shavinee Patel, Shan Deen
Kingston University, Kingston-upon-Thames, Surrey, United Kingdom
Focal Points
• Does learning some of the scientific component of the MPharm programme in a
clinical setting help students with their development as pharmacy practitioners?
• A majority of students in all four years of an MPharm programme reported that
being taught in a clinical environment made the science content of their course
more relevant to them. Additionally, a focus on diagnostic skills and clinical
aspects even in the science elements of the course was held to be a good
preparation for the role of clinical pharmacy practitioner.
• A mixed educational setting that encompasses a clinical as well as an academic
environment is valued by students as preparation for their professional roles.
Introduction
Kingston University’s MPharm programme involves the basic science physiology and
pharmacology modules being jointly taught by academics at Kingston University (KU) and St
George’s, University of London (SGUL). SGUL is a pre-1992 research-orientated university
specialising in the training of medical students whilst KU is a post-1992 institution wedded to the
ethos of widening participation. Thus the day to day experiences of the academic staff in the
two teams as well as the mix of students attending both institutions is likely to be very different.
Exposure of the students from the first year and throughout the whole programme to a clinical
learning environment may assist in the development of their professional roles. This
educational provision is in contrast to many UK schools of pharmacy where the scientific
elements of the MPharm programme are often delivered separately from the clinical aspects of
the programme. In fact, it has been found that students feel that the scientific elements of their
course lack relevance to the practice of pharmacy 1,2 .
Objective: To evaluate whether the mix of teaching environments might benefit professional
practice development.
Method
A pilot study was conducted initially to adapt the Course Experience Questionnaire 3 to the
specific context of the KU MPharm students. Using this modified Course Experience
Questionnaire 3 , students across all four years of the programme were non-coercively requested
by student volunteers to be surveyed about their experience of their unique learning setting.
Semi-structured interviews, again involving volunteers, were also used to more deeply
interrogate the student learning experience especially in relation to how they felt the course
prepared them for their clinical professional roles. These interviews were conducted by student
researchers in order to facilitate free exchange of opinions and to avoid interviewer bias.
Additionally, a small number of staff members from each institution were interviewed to elicit
their opinions on how they thought the course prepared the students for their future practice.
Interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed thematically.
Results
In terms of the Likert-scale questionnaire the response rate varied from 13 – 37 % of each year
cohort with a total of 188 students participating across all four years of the programme. A total
of 9 students and 8 academic staff were interviewed. Similar to the findings of others, some