Open AccessClinical Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience Rotations During COVID-19: Evaluation of a Transition to Virtual Learning
Author(s) -
Casey C. May,
Sara Atyia,
Amanda Hafford,
Keaton S. Smetana
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
journal of pharmacy practice
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.407
H-Index - 28
eISSN - 1531-1937
pISSN - 0897-1900
DOI - 10.1177/08971900221087116
Subject(s) - medicine , covid-19 , pharmacy , pharmacy practice , clinical practice , pandemic , medical education , medical physics , family medicine , virology , disease , infectious disease (medical specialty) , outbreak
BackgroundAll Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE) pharmacy rotations at a large academic medical center were converted to virtual experiences during the beginning of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Objective: This study aimed to describe information obtained through pre- and post-rotation surveys, implemented to improve experiences for future students who may be required to complete virtual APPE pharmacy rotations. Methods: A single-center, descriptive study was conducted at a 1382-bed academic medical center. A pre- and post-rotation survey was sent to 32 students, and a post-rotation survey was sent to 38 preceptors via email to assess newly implemented virtual rotations. Results: Students' response rate for pre- and post-rotation surveys was 59% and 41%, respectively, and the preceptors' response rate for the post-rotation survey was 37%. A statistically significant improvement in videoconferencing abilities after the rotation was found for students but no differences in other skills were noted. In the post-rotation survey, students rated all of the following areas as being "effective": rotation as a whole, virtual topic and patient discussions; but were "neutral" regarding the utility of the introductory training guide. In the post-rotation survey, preceptors rated all of the following areas as being "effective": rotation as a whole, virtual topic and patient discussions. Conclusion: Abrupt shifts to virtual pharmacy clinical rotations due to COVID-19 have led to many challenges. Both students and preceptors felt that virtual rotations were an effective alternative to in-person experiences; however, further studies are warranted to evaluate actual performance compared to perceived effectiveness.