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The relevance of medicinal chemistry to pharmacy practice has been questioned by many pharmacy educators as more emphasis has been placed on linking clinical knowledge and practice to pharmacy student educational outcomes. Faculty teaching in medicinal chemistry and other biomedical and pharmaceutical science courses have embraced this challenge. Various teaching methods and approaches within medicinal chemistry that emphasize application of this knowledge have been sought to improve the usefulness of this scientific discipline to the future careers of students. The newly revised ACPE guidelines and standards have reemphasized the role of the sciences in the curriculum. With this mandate, it is essential that all science faculty members adjust the way they teach to meet the new desired outcomes for pharmacy graduates. This manuscript describes an instructional model for teaching medicinal chemistry explicitly designed to meet these outcomes. A process of collaboration between experienced pharmacy faculty scholars was used to derive this approach. Pedagogy for cognitive and affective learning was incorporated. A case study using a representative drug class is presented to illustrate this model.

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The protective effect of vitamin A and vitamin E succinate against 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD)-induced acute toxicity and measures of oxidative stress was studied. Ten mice were treated with either vitamin A (50 mg/ kg every other day for eight days) or vitamin E succiante (150 mg/kg/day followed by a dose of 40 mg/kg/day for five additional days). Half of each of the above groups of animals received TCDD on day 4. Five mice received corn oil or TCDD alone. After five days of TCDD treatment, antioxidant combination treatment with vitamin A and TCDD or vitamin E succinate and TCDD resulted in a significant reduction in indicators of acute toxicity including the decrease in total body and thymus weight as compared to TCDD alone (PϽ0.05). The combination treatment produced also a significant reduction in the increase in liver weight as compared to TCDD only (PϽ0.05). Following one day of treatment with 50 mg TCDD/kg, vitamin A and vitamin E succinate produced a significant decrease in the production of superoxide anion by peritoneal lavage cells (PϽ0.05) and in DNA-single strand breaks in the same cells (PϽ0.05) as assessed by the reduction of cytochrome c and the alkaline elution technique, respectively. A significant decrease in DNA-single strand breaks in peritoneal lavage cells was observed following 5 days treatment with 50 mg TCDD/kg (PϽ0.05). The results indicate a potential role for oxidative stress in the acute toxicity of TCDD and a protective effect for vitamin A and vitamin E succinate in the overall toxicity of TCDD including measures of oxidative stress.

International outreach by schools and colleges of pharmacy is increasing. In this paper, we provide current practice guidelines to establish and maintain successful global/international advanced pharmacy practice experiences (G/I APPEs) with specific recommendations for home/host country and host site/institution. The paper is based on a literature review (2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013)(2014) in databases and Internet searches with specific keywords or terms. Educational documents such as syllabi and memoranda of understanding (MoUs) from pharmacy programs were also examined. In addition, a preliminary draft was developed and the findings and recommendations were reviewed in a 90-minute roundtable discussion at the 2014 American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy Annual Meeting. Recommendations for the host country include travel considerations (eg, passport, visa, air travel), safety, housing, transportation, travel alerts and warnings, health issues, and financial considerations. For the home country, considerations for establishment of G/I APPE site (eg, vetting process, MoU, site expectations) are described. The paper is a resource for development of new G/I APPEs and provides guidance for continuous quality improvement of partnerships focusing on G/I pharmacy education.

Objectives. To evaluate an instructional model for teaching clinically relevant medicinal chemistry.Methods. An instructional model that uses Bloom's cognitive and Krathwohl's affective taxonomy, published and tested concepts in teaching medicinal chemistry, and active learning strategies, was introduced in the medicinal chemistry courses for second-professional year (P2) doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) students (campus and distance) in the 2005-2006 academic year. Student learning and the overall effectiveness of the instructional model were assessed. Student performance after introducing the instructional model was compared to that in prior years. Results. Student performance on course examinations improved compared to previous years. Students expressed overall enthusiasm about the course and better understood the value of medicinal chemistry to clinical practice. Conclusion. The explicit integration of the cognitive and affective learning objectives improved student performance, student ability to apply medicinal chemistry to clinical practice, and student attitude towards the discipline. Testing this instructional model provided validation to this theoretical framework. The model is effective for both our campus and distance-students. This instructional model may also have broad-based applications to other science courses.

The 2-semester medicinal chemistry course sequence required in the second-professional year of the pharmacy program at Creighton University, entitled, The Chemical Basis of Drug Action I and II, has always emphasized the importance of a thorough analysis of drug structure as an integral part of rational therapeutic decision-making. The instructors have routinely attempted to reinforce the professional relevance of drug chemistry by employing learning tools such as the medicinal chemistry case study (both paper-based and computerized) and the structurally-based therapeutic evaluation (SBTE). [1][2][3][4][5] There has also been a conscious effort to honor the School's ability-based outcomes on (1) drug therapy evaluation, (2) pharmacotherapeutic decisionmaking, (3) taking personal responsibility for learning, and (4) critical thinking by demanding a demonstrated ability to apply knowledge of drug chemistry and structure-activity relationships (SAR) to patient care, and through the integration of course content with material previously learned and yet to be learned. [5][6][7] Course evaluation data gathered over the past several years has provided evidence that the active-learning strategies employed in the Chemical Basis courses enhance both learning and an appreciation of the practical relevance of our discipline's concepts. However, the instructors remained concerned about students' longterm retention and utilization of medicinal chemistry principles in practice without reinforcement in subsequent years of the curriculum. When invited to coordinate a session in the third-year (spring 2003) Early Pharmacy Practice Experience (EPPE) course, we readily accepted. At the time of our participation, the EPPE course sequence was woven throughout the full 6 semesters of didactic coursework. First-year students received an introduction to the most common practice environments (eg, hospital pharmacy, community pharmacy), while those in the second-professional year explored alternative career options and gained insight on physical assessment and issues related to patient-specific pharmaceutical care. The third-year EPPE courses were designed to be a preparation for major life events, clinical practice, and the impending transition to the clerkship year. A component of these 2 courses was dedicated to a review of previous coursework so that students could better integrate the major concepts with the experiences and professional insight they had gained from working in pharmacies and their formal study of clinically-focused coursework (therapeutics, pharmacokinetics). Objectives. To reinforce the relevance of chemistry to therapeutic decision-making. Design. A team-based game entitled, Who Wants To Be A Med Chem Millionaire? was devised for P3 students using clinical cases from Pharmacotherapeutics courses. Questions were developed to demonstrate the value of applying chemistry to meet patient care goals. Teams of 6 students played for healthrelated charities, and correct answers to questions earned Med Chem Moolah. Faculty me...

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