Abstract:

The use of medical simulation in Doctor of Pharmacy programs in the United States has been limited however a recent decision by the United States pharmacy education accrediting body, American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP), has approved the use of medical simulation for introductory pharmacy practice experiences (IPPE). Medical simulation can enhance the learning experience for students by providing high-quality experiences that may be difficult to achieve in their early professional training. Experiences may include medical emergencies such as cardiac arrest, adverse drug events and drug error which can be accurately simulated through the use of high-fidelity human patient simulators (HPS). Over the past decade, our college has used this form of medical simulation to create and deliver high-quality computer-driven scenarios that accurately simulate dynamic medical conditions. We have found that HPS provides an ideal opportunity for “hands on” problem-based learning and have integrated HPS into the existing Doctor of Pharmacy curriculum at our institution. In the first professional year (P1), simulation is used to illustrate basic pharmacologic principles including autonomic pharmacology. This progresses to the use of simulation to demonstrate the challenges of managing complex disease states such as septic shock. In the second professional year (P2), students practice physical assessment skills and formulate therapeutic recommendations for a simulated patient with an acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). In the third professional year (P3), we use simulation in a multi-disciplinary setting to foster communication, mutual understanding and teamwork between students from pharmacy, nursing and medicine. The scenarios at this level emphasize realism to best prepare students for what they will encounter in the workplace. Finally, in the fourth and final professional year (P4), simulation is used as an advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) to allow for further exploration of clinical challenges. In future, we plan to further expand our simulation activities into translational practice by enhancing hospital-based practice experiences with simulated cases. As simulation-based learning continues to gain support from accrediting bodies it is likely that all manner of medical simulation will expand among pharmacy schools worldwide.

Keywords:

Human patient simulation (HPS), medical simulation, pharmacy education.