Application of personal drug (P-drug) seminar to clinical pharmacy education in the graduate school of pharmaceutical sciences

The P-drug seminar, a novel method of teaching the process of rational pharmacotherapy, was introduced in 2000 into the practice program of the clinical pharmacy course in the Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University (TMPU). The P-drug concept is evidence-based drug selection according to criteria (i.e., efficacy, safety, suitability and cost) deter mined in advance and rational prescribing by each physician. The P-drug seminar originated from educational courses for medical students at the University of Groningen and has been propagated by the WHO Action Programme on Essential Drugs world wide. In the TMPU, the seminar consists of 5 half-days before the start of bedside teaching during clinical pharmacy practice. Each term, 8 graduate students licensed as pharmacists form one seminar group, and 32 students have completed it successfully in the past 2 years. Problem-based learning and self-awareness methods are applied through discussion among students. The same teaching materials as those used in the WHO P-drug workshop and the English textbook Guide to Good Prescribing were adopted. A short lecture on the pharmacist's role in the rational use of drugs was added to modify the original P-drug workshop for medical students since this was considered suitable for graduate students in clinical pharmacy. Our graduate students were able to learn the process of pharmacotherapy by following the steps of P-drug selection and rational treatment under the P-drug concept and also understand the viewpoint of prescribers and pharmacists' roles as medical staff. In conclusion, this is the first report on application of the P-drug method to clinical pharmacy education.