Preparing Student Pharmacists for Alternate Career Paths

by Kelsey Schultz, Pharm.D., PGY1 Pharmacy Practice Resident, Suburban Hospital Johns Hopkins Medicine

During my years in pharmacy school many friends and family members asked me the dreaded question, “What are your plans after graduation? Which pharmacy chain will you work for?”  Most people who asked about my post-graduation plans assumed I would work for a community pharmacy such as CVS or Walgreens.  They see these places of employment as the “traditional” role of a pharmacist.  While in pharmacy school, I became more aware of the numerous career opportunities a degree in pharmacy affords.  I became more and more aware of the disconnect between what the general public sometimes perceives the role of a pharmacist to be and the many roles pharmacists now play in healthcare today.  Today’s pharmacy graduates have a much wider range of career opportunities such as “IT” (information technology) pharmacist, medication safety officer, public health pharmacist, antibiotic stewardship pharmacist, and many more. Pharmacy graduates’ opportunities can be further widened if pharmacy educators expose students to the numerous available career paths early enough in the curriculum.¹  Many colleges and schools of pharmacy have developed formal ways for students to learn about new career opportunities including elective courses in specialized areas of practice, developing dual degree programs, and offering certain “tracks” in the curriculum such as a “research track” for those interested in going into academic or the pharmaceutical industry.

Elective courses are a great, relatively simple way for pharmacy schools to introduce new, unique specialty areas of practice to student pharmacists. During my time at my alma mater, Butler University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, I had the opportunity to take several elective pharmacy courses on topics such as diabetes care, nutritional support, internal medicine, nuclear pharmacy, ambulatory care, and pain management.  The diabetes care elective helped prepared me for an ambulatory care rotation where I spent a week at an American Diabetes Association (ADA) sponsored summer camp for children with type 1 diabetes.  During the rotation I was part of an interdisciplinary team that monitored and adjusted the campers’ insulin regimens. The elective and rotation exposed me to the unique work and responsibilities of ambulatory care pharmacists.

A recent study examined the career preferences of student who completed an elective academic pharmacy course.² The course was offered to first, second, and third year pharmacy students and included online and face-to-face classroom sessions. The course content included topics such as educational theory, student motivation, lesson and outcome planning, teaching strategies, assessment, instructional technology and design.  Students’ knowledge, skills, and attitudes towards academia were measured by pre- and post-course assessments, quizzes, journal entries, and interviews. The results found that after completing the course, forty percent of the students stated they were considering academic pharmacy as a career.

Another report described the creation of a research elective “track” for pharmacy students and how successfully promoted research-based careers. The research track consisted of 12 credit hours of didactic instruction, independent research, and seminar courses.  Doctor of Pharmacy students and recent graduates provided feedback regarding the research track through face-to-face, email, and telephone interviews. Student feedback was very positive.  Four out of five students were considering graduate education or research-based employment at the end of the course. ³ Although these elective courses seems to positively influence students toward a particular career path, I think students also need to explore on their own to identify potential career areas of interest.

The American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) recently published recommendations on the future of pharmaceutical sciences and graduate education in which they recommended the development of dual degree programs.⁴  Several dual degree programs exist, including the PharmD and JD (Juris Doctor) for those who are interested in healthcare law, government and regulatory agencies, as well as patent law.  The PharmD and MBA (Masters of Business Administration) program trains future pharmacists in leadership, entrepreneurial, and business roles.  Other degrees that student can earn concurrently with the PharmD include a PhD, MPH (Maters in Public Health), MS (Masters in Science), MSHI (Masters in Healthcare Informatics), and MHA (Masters in Healthcare Administration).⁵

The University of Georgia’s (UGA) College of Pharmacy is an interesting example of a college that initiated a unique Regulatory Affairs Professional Program in response to interest from members of the Georgia Biomedical Partnership, a group looking to bring science companies to Georgia. The Regulatory Affairs Professional Program offers both certificate and master’s studies and normally takes two years to complete. The program trains student pharmacists for jobs at companies that work on the development of new drugs and medical devices. Dr. Svein Oie, Dean of the University of Georgia College of Pharmacy, shared an interesting thought on the change in pharmacy practice settings over time. He said:

We see an increasing trend toward much more clinical, the specialty that can be in the hospital, in ambulatory; it can be in a number of different settings where our graduates are now working. In contrast to where we were 30 years ago, when we educated students to be knowledge-based about various compounds and drugs, we are now training them to be more patient-oriented. ⁶

It is through new elective courses, curriculum “tracks”, dual degree programs, and post-graduate training that schools and colleges of pharmacy are preparing student pharmacists for new and alternate career paths.  While these approaches are a good start to exposing students to non-traditional employment opportunities, students must actively discover the career path that best matches their personal interest.

References:

1.  DiPiro JT. Preparing Our Students for the Many Opportunities in Pharmacy. Am J Pharm Educ. 2011;75: Article 170.

2.  Baia P and Strang A. An Elective Course to Promote Academic Pharmacy as a Career. Am J Pharm Educ. 2012;76: Article 30.

3.  Surratt CK, Drennen JK, Bricker JD. The “Research Track” Concentration, a New PharmD Elective Option. Am J Pharm Educ. 2005;69: Article 90.

4.  Wu-Pong S, Gobburu J, O’Barr S, Shah K, et al. The Future of the Pharmaceutical Sciences and Graduate Education: Recommendations from the AACP Graduate Education Special Interest Group. Am J Pharm Educ. 2013;77:S2.

5.  PharmD Dual Degree Programs. http://www.pharmdprograms.org/pharmd-dual-degree-programs/
6.  Lightsey E. Pharmacists for the Future. Georgia Trend. 2011:33-37.

Vidcasting: Embracing a New Generation of Learners

by Lauren Lakdawala, PharmD, PGY1 Community Pharmacy Resident, Johns Hopkins Home Care Group

For many students today the thought of not having technology in the classroom would probably make them feel hopeless.  I remember receiving the technology memo prior to the start of college (circa 2000) stating that laptop computers were strongly discouraged due to risk of theft. Nearly a decade later, when I enrolled in pharmacy school, I would not have survived without a laptop computer and smart phone. Indeed, our culture is heavily engaged in a world of Internet-ready computers, tablets, readers, and smart phones. But are educators really using our robust technology to its fullest potential? In 2005, Stanford University embraced podcasting with the launch of “Stanford on iTunes” to provide students downloads of lectures, events, book readings, and even football games.¹ But even podcasts are a thing of the past — enter video on demand or vidcast.

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Why use vidcasting?

Vidcasting (also known as vodcasting or video podcasting) is the process of simply adding video to a podcast, and linking it to a really simple syndication (RSS). One can subscribe to the RSS feeds which then automatically download new content into software such as Windows Media Player or iTunes.²  Vidcasting serves the instructional needs of the Internet savvy generation-Y and -Z learners. According to Marc Prensky, the majority of students in higher education today are “native speakers of the digital language… [who] think and process information fundamentally differently from their predecessors.”³ As we increasingly rely on the Internet as our main source of information, our pedagogical approach to education needs to complement the digital lifestyle of today.⁴ Vidcasting allows educators to reach students in an environment in which they are already comfortable.

Unfortunately, many educators have resisted the use of podcasts and vidcasts in their classes due to fears that attendance will decline.⁵ However, Traphagan et al. found that students typically viewed video lectures for content review before exams, to enhance understanding of a lecture, add more information to notes, reduce anxiety related to the course — not as a replacement for class attendance.⁵ In addition, vidcasting should not be viewed as a replacement for interaction with the teacher, but a way to blend learning.⁶

What can pharmacy educators do with vidcasting?

Vidcasting can be used in a number of ways to blend learning within the pharmacy curriculum. One can use a vidcast as a pre-lecture, when something requires review on a topic that cannot be accommodated during classroom time. A pre-lecture vidcast can introduce pathophysiology and this would permit the instructor more time to focus on medications during a class session. Or pre-lecture demonstration video can give students more time to practice how to properly measure blood pressure in skills lab. A vidcast could also be used for an exam review to help “boost their [students’] knowledge…at the time it’s needed most.”² This type of vidcast may help reduce anxiety by reviewing core concepts for the exam and, as an on-demand instructional tool, would allow every student the opportunity to access the review session materials. Pharmacy educators can record lectures at the beginning of the year and provide review sessions prior to or following exams.⁷ Vidcasts can also be used a way to break up long lectures so that more time can be dedicated to discussion and hands on work— such as case-based scenarios in the classroom.⁶ Another use of vidcasting could be student-produced videos, to fulfill the requirements for a group presentation in a class. One professor who replaced conventional in-class presentations with short vidcasts by students found that not only was class time saved, but the presentations were “better structured, more to the point, and more reflected than typical in-class presentations.”⁶ In the pharmacy classroom, this could be a new drug presentation, patient education, or even a business plan proposal. Moreover, students would develop new technology skills that are needed to succeed in today’s workforce.

To embrace this new era of learning, educators must remember the importance of prudently using technology to compliment traditional methods of learning. When use appropriately, vidcasting forces students to strengthen their independent self-directed learning skills. As pharmacy educators are often burdened with many responsibilities, including research and mentoring, vidcasting can add some flexibility to the instructor’s schedule. One can record vidcasts ahead of time to cut back on the number of face-to-face classroom-based meeting times. As an educator, I probably would not switch everything to blended learning, but rather focus on using vidcasts as an opportunity to enhance learning. If a majority of your class sessions employ lecture-based methods, consider using vidcasts to provide your students with a review session prior to an exam. If your class assignments include a group presentation, allow your students the choice of producing a vidcast instead of giving a podium presentation. Educators need to leverage the skills of students today and engage them with technology — otherwise you may fall short in reaching your learning objectives. The classroom is filled with technology hungry learners and it is the responsibility of educators to harness the power of technology to teach.

To learning more about how vidcast, check out these resources:

Mac and windows users can learn how to create vidcasts at:

http://www.slideshare.net/WCETConference2010/creating-videocast-lectures

Mac users can view this how-to create vidcasts at: http://www.mactech.com/articles/mactech/Vol.21/21.11/Vodcasting

References

1.  Leach J. University to podcast course content. 2005. Accessed 2013 November 14.

2.  Educational Technology Network. Classroom podcasting/vodcasting. 2009. Accessed October 19, 2013.

3. Hart J. Understanding today’s learner. 2008 September 22.  Accessed November 11, 2013.

4. Educause. 7 things you should know about flipped classrooms. 2012 Feb 28. Accessed 2013 October 19.

5.  Flynn R, Newbutt N, Ackroyd T, Dastbaz M. Podcasting and Vidcasting–Delivering Engaging Learning to A New Generation. 2009.  Accessed 2013 October 19.

6.  Storgaard CS, Heilesen SB. Facilitating blended learning by means of vidcasting. 2010. Accessed November 11, 2013.

7.  Pew internet and American life project. Health information online. 2005 May 17. Accessed 2013 October 19.