Review of pharmacist undergraduate education and pre-registration training

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Review of pharmacist undergraduate education and
pre-registration training
Rob DarracottProfessor Anthony Smith
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• Policy context and drivers for review
• Objectives of review
• Review process to date
• Strengths and weaknesses of current education and
  training arrangements
• Group work session

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Pharmacy in England building on strengths,
delivering the future Chapter 7

• Meaningful clinical context and experience
  throughout the undergraduate programme and
  determine whether this can be maximimised by
  integrateing the degree course with the
  pre-registration year
• Appropriate funding framework in place to support
  academia and clinical practice in delivering the
  new programme
• Sufficient capacity in the academic workforce and
  an appropriate infrastructure in clinical
  practice to provide high quality education

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Life Sciences Blueprint

• A strategic approach to pharmacy education and
  training must also take account of the role that
  pharmacy education and pharmacists play in the UK
  life sciences industry as described by the Life
  Sciences Blueprint Building Britains Future

Statement from Office for Life Sciences July 2009
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Expected outcomes of the review

• Strengths and weaknesses inherent in the current
  undergraduate pharmacy degree course and
  pre-registration training as a foundation for
  enhancing delivery of clinical, leadership,
  professional and scientific aspects of pharmacy
  careers
• Changes required in the pre-registration
  education and training to ensure that newly
  registered pharmacists can practise safely and
  effectively and are appropriately prepared to
  undertake further post registration development
• Emerging options for implementing required
  changes, together with supporting evidence for
  any preferred option
• Implications of identified options for pharmacy
  education and pre-registration training in other
  parts of the UK

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Review process

• September 2009 Project team assembled and begin
  review
• October 2009 Institute of Education
  commissioned to support project team
• October to December 2009 Evidence gathering
• Review of literature and curricula
• Engagement with schools of pharmacy and pharmacy
  professional and regulatory bodies
• Interviews with academics, employers,
  pre-registration students and pharmacists
• Project team gather views and information from
  their sectors or specialties
• Submission from BPSA
• January 2010 Stakeholder event
• January 2010 Report of review prepared for MPC
  PB and MEE

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Strengths of current arrangements

• An education and training process that provides
  registrants with an excellent knowledge base upon
  which to build their professional practice
• Students enjoy the opportunities the current
  MPharm degree offers in terms of broad education
  and career options
• Schools of pharmacy on an individual basis have
  responded to evolving roles for pharmacists
• Specialist research areas inspiring for students
• Availability of pre-reg placements broadly
  matches demand
• Opportunities for pharmacists and doctors to
  undertake training together to foster inter
  professional working are in place in some schools
• Student Code of Conduct and Student Fitness to
  practice arrangements

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• It was great to apply what I had learned in
  lectures to a practice scenario. It also helped
  me understand what a doctor knows and gave me the
  opportunity to tell them what a pharmacist knows.
  The medic never realised that he could ask
  pharmacists those type of questions
• 4th year MPharm Student
• BPSA submission to MPC Review Team

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Weaknesses of current arrangements

• Late exposure to pharmacy practice and students
  given idealised view of pharmacy practice
• Lack of context for theoretical learning
• Too focussed on community sector
• Professionalism within the MPharm needs further
  development so that students have a clear
  understanding of their current and future
  responsibilities as pharmacists
• Lack of business and management training in
  degree course
• Counter prescribing and safe provision of OTC
  medicines are not covered in sufficient depth
• Lack of standardisation of MPharm
• Expectations of employers and students for the
  pre-reg year not always aligned
• Variation in quality of pre-reg training and
  tutors
• Preparing for pre-registration examination can
  dominate the final year of practice-based
  learning

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• As pharmacy students we need to understand more
  about how its like in the real world and what
  pharmacy practice is truly about
• 4th year MPharm Student
• BPSA submission to MPC Review Team

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• Group work on strengths and weaknesses of current
  arrangements

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Principles for pharmacy curriculum

• A continuous period of formation with
  registration and graduation at the end of year 5
• Early exposure to practice to support students to
  make more informed choices about their future
  careers in pharmacy
• Close collaboration between HEIs and employers to
  strengthen their partnerships to support the
  initial formation of pharmacist and to pave the
  way for their subsequent professional development

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Options for change

• Dr David Guile
• Course Leader MA Lifelong Learning
• Faculty of Policy and Society
• Institute of Education
• University of London