Partner for Promotion: an innovative advanced community pharmacy practice experience.

Objectives: To implement the Partner for Promotion (PFP) program which was designed to enhance the skills and confidence of students and community pharmacy preceptors to deliver and expand advanced patient care services in community pharmacies and also to assess the program's impact.

Design: A 10-month longitudinal community advanced pharmacy practice experience was implemented that included faculty mentoring of students and preceptors via formal orientation; face-to-face training sessions; online monthly meetings; feedback on service development materials; and a web site offering resources and a discussion board. Pre- and post-APPE surveys of students and preceptors were used to evaluate perceptions of knowledge and skills.

Assessment: The skills survey results for the first 2 years of the PFP program suggest positive changes occurring from pre- to post-APPE survey in most areas for both students and preceptors. Four of the 7 pharmacies in 2005-2006 and 8 of the 14 pharmacies in 2006-2007 were able to develop an advanced patient care service and begin seeing patients prior to the conclusion of the APPE. As a result of the PFP program from 2005-2007, 14 new experiential sites entered into affiliation agreements with The Ohio State University College of Pharmacy.

Conclusion: The PFP program offers an innovative method for community pharmacy faculty members to work with students and preceptors in community pharmacies in developing patient care services.