Implementation and Evaluation of Entrustable Professional Activities for a Pharmacy Intern Training Program in Australia.

Objective: This study aimed to describe the implementation and evaluation of entrustable professional activities (EPAs) for a pharmacy intern training program in Australia.

Methods: Surveys and focus groups were used to evaluate the perceptions and experiences of provisionally registered pharmacists and pharmacists using the EPAs as an assessment tool in the workplace. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the focus group data.

Comparing the experiences of community and hospital pharmacy learners completing a pre-registrant research training program.

Background And Purpose: Research training programs in the community pharmacy sector have not been well established. This study showcases a year-long guided research training program undertaken in hospital and community workplaces by pre-registrant pharmacists, and compares the perceived impact on learners in both sectors.

Educational Activity And Setting: A two-year cohort study (2021-2022) of pre-registrant pharmacists enrolled in a research training program requiring them to undertake an individual project at their workplace over one year at either a community or hospital workplace.

Development and Validation of Entrustable Professional Activities for Provisionally Registered (Intern) Pharmacists in Australia.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to describe the development and validation of entrustable professional activities (EPAs) for a pharmacy intern training program in Australia.

Methods: Performance outcomes with EPAs suggested as an assessment in the intern year were identified and EPAs were developed. The EQual rubric, designed for EPAs in graduate medical education settings, was used to validate the EPAs.

The development and validation of a global advanced development framework for the pharmacy workforce: a four-stage multi-methods approach.

Background: Studies have indicated that a generalisable and translatable global framework is a useful tool for supporting career progression and recognising advanced practice.

Aim: To develop and validate a global advanced competency development framework as a tool to advance the pharmacy profession globally.

Method: A four-stage multi-methods approach was adopted.

Strengthening Primary Healthcare through accelerated advancement of the global pharmacy workforce: a cross-sectional survey of 88 countries.

Objective: Advancing the pharmacy workforce contributes to strengthening primary healthcare and accelerating progress towards universal health coverage. This study aimed to identify key enablers to support policy development for national pharmacy workforce advancement.

Design: A cross-sectional country-level questionnaire was distributed from July 2018 to March 2019.

A Review of Entrustable Professional Activities in Pharmacy Education.

To review the published literature describing how entrustable professional activities (EPAs) are currently used in health professions education with a focus on pharmacy education. English-language searches in the databases CINAHL Plus and MEDLINE were conducted for January 2011 through March 2021, which identified 21 publications for inclusion in this review. The following themes were identified: frameworks for the development of EPAs, the implementation and evaluation of EPAs for workplace learning, and gaps in knowledge and future directions for EPAs.

Development of a Vertically Integrated Pharmacy Degree.

Whilst curriculum revision is commonplace, whole degree transformation is less so. In this paper we discuss the rationale, design and implementation of a unique pharmacy program by a research-intensive faculty. The new Monash pharmacy curriculum, which had its first intake in 2017, was built using a range of key innovations that aimed to produce graduates that demonstrate key conceptual understanding and all the skills required to deliver world-best patient outcomes.

Developing a Global Community of Practice for Pharmacy Workforce Resilience-Meet GRiT.

Workforce resilience in pharmacy is required to ensure the practice, education, and administrative systems remain viable and sustainable over time and when facing challenges. Whether it is addressing burnout of pharmacists or students, or the structure and policies/procedures of employment and professional organizations, working to increase resilience across all individuals and sectors is essential to relieve pressure and promote better well-being, especially during the recent pandemic. The purpose of this article is to describe the development of a community of practice global group focused on development of resilience within the pharmacy workforce that is inclusive of students, pharmacy interns/preregistration and registered pharmacists.

The development, validity and applicability to practice of pharmacy-related competency frameworks: A systematic review.

Background: Global reforms in the education of health workers has culminated in the implementation of competency-based education and training (CBET). In line with the CBET model, competency frameworks are now commonplace in the health professions. In pharmacy, these frameworks are used to regulate career entry, benchmark standards of practice and facilitate expertise development.

The effectiveness and impact on performance of pharmacy-related competency development frameworks: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Competency frameworks for education, training and development are widely used in the health professions, including pharmacy. Published studies suggest that competency frameworks have an impact on professional performance. Professional performance that is consistent with up-to-date knowledge and skills influences health care quality and patient safety.

Experiential Education in the Time of COVID-19: An Australian Experience.

The pharmacy degree at Monash University is a four year undergraduate Bachelor of Pharmacy with Honours (BPharm(Hons)), followed by a one year Master of Pharmacy incorporating a preregistration year of supervised practice, known in Australia as internship. The first cohort of the BPharm(Hons) will graduate in 2020. A key principle of the new curriculum was that clinical experiential placements should commence early in the curriculum, be fully integrated with the didactic curriculum, and prepare students for internship by developing their competence in performing useful and relevant tasks in the workplace.

Effectiveness of multimedia interventions in the provision of patient education on anticoagulation therapy: A review.

Objective: A literature review was conducted to identify available evidence on the use of multimedia patient educational interventions on anticoagulation therapy.

Methods: A literature search was conducted on 9/4/2020 via six research databases. Publications that evaluated the effects of these interventions on anticoagulation therapy were included.

A global survey on trends in advanced practice and specialisation in the pharmacy workforce.

Objectives: Despite the increasingly complex care and demanding health challenges shaping pharmacy, little work has been carried out to understand the global status of advanced and/or specialised pharmacy practice scopes and the models in which they exist. This study aims to describe the current global status of initiatives relating to advancement of pharmacy practice.

Methods: A global survey was conducted between January and May 2015 to collect country-level data from member organisations of the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP), and national-level contacts from regulatory, professional and government agencies or universities; data requests were sent to 109 countries.

Trends in advanced practice and specialisation in the global pharmacy workforce: a synthesis of country case studies.

Objectives: This study aims to gain a better understanding of the drivers and barriers to the development of advanced practice and specialised systems around the world. Through the synthesis of in-depth country case studies, this paper aims to identify current models of advanced practice and specialisation in pharmacy and illustrate trends, drivers and barriers in policy development. This is the first analysis of its kind to examine pharmacy specialisation and advanced practice in this depth from a global perspective.

Evaluation of a Situational Judgement Test to Develop Non-Academic Skills in Pharmacy Students.

To design, implement, and psychometrically evaluate a situational judgement test (SJT) to use as a formative assessment of pharmacy students' non-academic skills in an Australian-based university. An SJT was developed using a previously validated design process including involvement of subject matter experts. The first phase included design of a blueprint through stakeholder consultation and the development of bespoke attribute definitions and a tool specification.

The impact of a Calderdale Framework designed advanced pharmacy assistant role on inpatient pharmacy services.

Background Pharmacists in Australian hospitals do not see all inpatients. Effectively utilising pharmacy assistants in non-traditional roles may provide an opportunity to increase the number of patients seen by pharmacists. Objective To implement a Calderdale Framework designed advanced pharmacy assistant role on an inpatient unit and evaluate the impact of the role on the provision of clinical pharmacy services provided by the pharmacist in an Australian University hospital.

Medication-related issues associated with the documentation and administration of long-acting injectable antipsychotics.

Background There are significant research gaps into understanding the extent of medication errors within mental health and variation in the uptake of standardised medication safety practices. Long-acting injectable antipsychotic (LAIA) preparations are a common treatment modality for the administration of antipsychotic medicines. Aim of the review To examine the literature on medication-related errors and practice issues associated with the documentation and administration of LAIAs.

Structured Multi-Stakeholder Workshops to Advance a Global Transformative Roadmap for Pharmaceutical Workforce.

Unlabelled: In November 2016, the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) endeavored to create an environment to foster a shared vision to lead a transformative pharmaceutical workforce roadmap. Three milestone documents were developed and presented at the Global Conference on Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Education. Workshops with the key themes and connecting Pharmaceutical Workforce Development Goals (PWDG) were conducted and analyzed.

Transnational comparability of advanced pharmacy practice developmental frameworks: a country-level crossover mapping study.

Background: Previous work by the International Pharmaceutical Federation Education Initiative (FIPEd) demonstrates that even though some country-specific variations occur in pharmacy practice, there exists a set of practice-related competencies that are globally applicable. This study aimed to evaluate the transnational comparability of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society Advanced Pharmacy Framework (RPS-APF, Great Britain) and the Advanced Pharmacy Practice Framework for Australia (APPF). The objective was to obtain preliminary data on the transnational applicability of the developmental competencies contained in the two frameworks.

Reducing medication errors in hospital discharge summaries: a randomised controlled trial.

Objectives: To evaluate whether pharmacists completing the medication management plan in the medical discharge summary reduced the rate of medication errors in these summaries.

Design: Unblinded, cluster randomised, controlled investigation of medication management plans for patients discharged after an inpatient stay in a general medical unit.

Setting: The Alfred Hospital, an adult major referral hospital in metropolitan Melbourne, with an annual emergency department attendance of about 60000 patients.

Partnered medication review and charting between the pharmacist and medical officer in the Emergency Short Stay and General Medicine Unit.

Objective: A partnered medication review and charting model involving a pharmacist and medical officer was implemented in the Emergency Short Stay Unit and General Medicine Unit of a major tertiary hospital. The aim of the study was to describe the safety and effectiveness of partnered medication charting in this setting.

Methods: A partnered medication review and charting model was developed.

Evaluation of the national pharmacy preceptor education program.

Objective: The process evaluation findings and key issues from a trial of the effectiveness and national applicability of a national online educational curriculum for pharmacist preceptors are presented.

Design: A multi-method triangulated research design was used to elicit qualitative and quantitative data preceptors. The data collection method involved an anonymous questionnaire with both quantitative components and open-ended qualitative responses.

A prospective multicentre study of pharmacist initiated changes to drug therapy and patient management in acute care government funded hospitals.

Aims: To determine the cost savings of pharmacist initiated changes to hospitalized patients' drug therapy or management in eight major acute care government funded teaching hospitals in Australia.

Methods: This was a prospective study performed in eight hospitals examining resource implications of pharmacists' interventions assessed by an independent clinical panel. Pharmacists providing clinical services to inpatients recorded details of interventions, defined as any action that directly resulted in a change to patient management or therapy.