Developing entry-level competencies in sterile product preparation: an emerging challenge for pharmacy schools and experiential practice sites.

Purpose: Factors influencing the decision of hospital experiential sites to allow advanced pharmacy practice education (APPE) students to compound parenteral admixtures during their rotation experience were evaluated.

Methods: A survey was sent via e-mail to APPE sites used by Illinois Pharmacy Coalition schools in spring 2011. One preceptor from each site was identified to complete the survey.

A regional poison prevention education service-learning project.

Objective: To create a service-learning project to provide poison prevention education to preschool through fifth-grade students.

Design: The School of Pharmacy collaborated with the Illinois Poison Center and campus departments to train pharmacy students as poison prevention educators. Seventy-eight first-year pharmacy students developed and gave age-appropriate, interactive presentations to more than 8,000 students at preschools and elementary schools.

A sequence of introductory pharmacy practice experiences to address the new standards for experiential learning.

Objective: To implement an introductory pharmacy practice experience (IPPE) curricular sequence in a manner that optimized preceptor availability, fostered significant learning, and addressed the new standards for experiential education.

Design: A 4-course, 300+ hour IPPE sequence was developed with 1 module in each semester of the first 2 professional years. Semesters were 18 weeks in length with IPPE taking place in the middle weeks as dedicated time blocks when no concurrent didactic courses were scheduled.