Abstract:

The Quality Guarantee Committee (QGC) of the Faculty of Pharmacy is the organization responsible for planning and implementing the Internal Quality Assurance System (IQAS) in the Degree in Pharmacy. The QGC is chaired by the Dean of the Faculty and formed by lecturers, students, administration and services staff, and professionals. The main role of the QGC is to watch over the continuous improvement in the quality of the Degree, both academic and administrative, through the participation of all the groups involved in its evaluation. One of the functions of the QGC is to conduct follow-up reports which respond to the recommendations issued by the Direction of Evaluation and Accreditation (DEVA) of the Regional Government of Andalusia in the renewal report of the accreditation of the Degree in Pharmacy and establishing improvement plans.

The objective of this work is to show the improvement plans considered by the QGC during 2016-2019 courses in response to the recommendations established by the DEVA. Therefore, detecting possible deficiencies in the effective development of the teaching and analyzing the actions conducted for their correction and improvement.

In order to achieve this aim, the QGC follows the next methodology of work. In first place, developing an internal follow-up process that enable the collection of information by surveys to students, lecturers and administration and services staff. Those indicators marked by DEVA as specials are controlled by the QGC in their periodic meetings. With the set of information recovered, the QGC establishes improvement plans with specific and verifiable actions for a period of time. These actions should be performed by the QGC itself, the deanship, or others University agencies. Finally, the QGC must regularly draft a self-evaluation report on each of the actions raised-i.e., an internal follow-up is conducted annually and an external follow-up that is conducted for the third and fifth year after the renewal of the DEVA accreditation.

Every action undertaken by the QGC has been proved to be adequate to resolve the weaknesses highlighted in the follow-up report and to guarantee the efficient management and the quality of the Degree in Pharmacy. All the actions are in process of implementation except four of them that have been implemented and completed correctly.

These four actions are:
a) To provide information and encourage our university community to elaborate of the English version of all the learning guides of the Degree in Pharmacy,
b) To give visibility to the International Relations Commission on the website of the Degree in Pharmacy and analyze its activity,
c) To include the research competences to be acquired by students according to the rules for the preparation of the Final Degree Work, a
d) To evaluate the results obtained from satisfaction surveys to students related to external practices and include them in the next self-evaluation reports.


In conclusion, the QGC is in charge to realize improvement actions to boost strengths and minimize weaknesses of the Degree in Pharmacy. However, as these actions are completely implemented in mid-term period, it is essential that the QGC keeps working towards the total establishment of improvement plans.

Keywords:

Internal Quality Assurance System, improvement plans, evaluation criteria, internal follow-up process, and recommendations