Personalized Medicine: Are We Preparing Our Students for the Knowledge Revolution?

Personalized medicine uses a patient's individual data to make decisions tailored to their specific wants and needs. In the The Decision Tree, Thomas Goetz describes how patients can be taught to make their own personal health strategy based on the “best practices of genetics, behavioral medicine, information technology and each other.”1 An increased desire by patients to be true partners in their health care decisions and the shift towards encounters and disease monitoring taking place outside the doctor's office or hospital are advancing personalized medicine initiatives. The Innovators Prescription describes a solution to decrease health care costs and increase access by using wireless medical devices, wellness programs, telehealth, medical homes, and retail clinics to deliver health care.2 So how do we prepare pharmacy students to partner with their patients in a decentralized, technology-driven, and more-personalized environment, while keeping a human touch? Fortunately, pharmacy accreditation standards already mandate that graduates be able to provide patient-centered and population-based care. 3 However, strategies to deliver that care are changing and curriculums must keep pace. This viewpoint focuses on 2 areas for consideration as we continue to prepare students for new models of health care delivery.