Exploring the experiences and expectations of pharmacist interns in large general hospitals in China: from the perspective of interns

Abstract

Background Hospital-based pharmacy internship (HBPI) is critical for the transition from “pharmacy students” to “professional pharmacists”. This study explores the pharmacist interns’ experiences and expectations for HBPI from their personal experiences intending to provide references for future hospital pharmacy education reform and policy development. Methods This is a multicenter qualitative study applying focus group discussions. Pharmacist interns were invited as participants from large teaching hospitals in Henan, China. A thematic analysis was conducted to qualitatively analyze this data. Nvivo 12 was utilized for data management and processing. Results Three focus group discussions were conducted, involving 16 interns as participants. Three themes were summarized regarding interns’ expectations and experiences: (1) positive experiences of the HBPI; (2) negative experiences of the HBPI; (3) expectations and suggestions for the HBPI. Conclusion This study finds that the HBPI improves the professional knowledge, professional skills, and core competencies of interns. Therefore, the HBPI is an important preparation and transition stage for pharmacy students. However, the current pharmacy internship in China still has imperfections such as the insufficient ability of clinical teachers, unreasonable internship models, and unscientific internship content.

What learning strategies are commonly used by hospital pharmacists in the process of self-directed learning? A multicentre qualitative study

“…These hospitals employ nearly 800 hospital pharmacists in total, thus providing a rich sample source for this study. 19 …”

“…Previous related studies by our group generally lasted about 6 months. 19 Third, due to the policy of epidemic isolation, we did not select interviewees from other provinces.…”

“…These hospitals employ nearly 800 hospital pharmacists in total, thus providing a rich sample source for this study. 19 Study population A purposeful sampling method was employed to select hospital pharmacists as interviewees from the sample hospitals, including dispensing pharmacists, clinical pharmacists and pharmacy department managers. 20 The inclusion criteria for pharmacists as interviewees were as follows: (1) working as a full-time pharmacist for at least 3 years; (2) possessing at least a bachelor's degree and (3) being willing to participate in the present study.…”

“…The three hospitals are the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University (with approximately 8500 beds and 360 pharmacists), Henan Provincial People’s Hospital (with approximately 5000 beds and 260 pharmacists) and Henan Cancer Hospital (with approximately 5000 beds and 150 pharmacists). These hospitals employ nearly 800 hospital pharmacists in total, thus providing a rich sample source for this study 19…”

“…Factors such as the epidemic prevention and control policy significantly influenced the appropriate time for appointments with interviewers, resulting in a relatively long duration of the study. Previous related studies by our group generally lasted about 6 months 19. Third, due to the policy of epidemic isolation, we did not select interviewees from other provinces.…”