An evaluation of teaching physical examination to pharmacists.

Background: Evolving scope of practice has led pharmacists to develop new skills traditionally performed by other members of the health care team, including physical examination (PE). A session to teach PE skills to pharmacists was created as part of a professional development program. The purpose of this study was to evaluate participants' perception of, barriers to and confidence in performing PE before and after the session.

Methods: A 2-hour session introduced participants to PE as part of a primary care professional development program. Surveys were administered before and after the session, and then 4 weeks later. Participants' confidence in performing PE was assessed using a 4-point unipolar scale questionnaire, and mean weighted responses were compared between the pre- and post-session surveys.

Results: Thirty-four pharmacists participated in the study. At baseline, 82.4% had never received formal PE education, but 38.2% performed PE in practice, including blood pressure measurement. Eighty-two percent of participants identified barriers to performing PE, the most common being lack of formal training. Participants' confidence with PE significantly increased between the pre- and post-session surveys, except for comfort with making drug therapy interventions based on PE findings. Forty-three percent of participants completed the 4-week follow-up survey, which demonstrated that the use of PE in practice remained unchanged.

Conclusion: Prior to the session, most participants did not use PE in their practice, primarily due to a lack of formal training. The session significantly improved participants' confidence in PE, but this did not translate into short-term practice change.