Design of a pharmaceutical care laboratory: A survey of practitioners

Objectives. To obtain practitioners' opinions on the skills necessary for a pharmaceutical care practice and their assessment of our students' competencies in relevant activities. The goal was to use these data to design a pharmaceutical care laboratory course that would prepare students for current as well as future practice of pharmacy. Methods. Two hundred ninety- one questionnaires were sent to preceptors involved in the experiential program at the St. Louis College of Pharmacy. They were asked to indicate on a 5- point Likert scale their opinion of the relative importance of various skills and abilities in a pharmaceutical care practice and to assess our students' competence in various areas. Results. According to practitioners, the most important skills in a successful pharmaceutical care practice are patient counseling, profile review for drug- related problems, interpretation and verification of prescriptions, drug information skills, and communication with health care professionals. Documentation of interventions, use of home diagnostic devices, and physical assessment were identified as areas in which students' competencies needed to be addressed. Conclusions. The results of this survey were used in the development of the Pharmaceutical Care Laboratory course to help ensure its relevance to the contemporary as well as future practice of pharmacy. The findings of this study indicate that while the focus of the laboratory should be patient care activities, we should continue to integrate these with traditional elements of pharmacy practice.