Status of Pharmacy Practice Experience Education Programs

Abstract

Objective. To assess financial, personnel, and curricular characteristics of US pharmacy practice experiential education programs and follow-up on results of a similar survey conducted in 2001. Methods. Experiential education directors at 118 accredited US pharmacy colleges and schools were invited to participate in a blinded, Web-based survey in 2011. Aggregate responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics and combined with data obtained from the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy to assess program demographics, faculty and administrative organizational structure, and financial support. Results. The number of advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) sites had increased by 24% for medium, 50% for large, and 55% for very large colleges and schools. Introductory pharmacy practice experience (IPPE) sites outnumbered APPEs twofold. The average experiential education team included an assistant/associate dean (0.4 full-time equivalent [FTE]), a director (1.0 FTE), assistant/associate director (0.5 FTE), coordinator (0.9 FTE), and multiple administrative assistants (1.3 FTE). Most faculty members (63%-75%) were nontenure track and most coordinators (66%) were staff members. Estimated costs to operate an experiential education program represented a small percentage of the overall expense budget of pharmacy colleges and schools. Conclusion. To match enrollment growth, pharmacy practice experiential education administrators have expanded their teams, reorganized responsibilities, and found methods to improve cost efficiency. These benchmarks will assist experiential education administrators to plan strategically for future changes.

A Qualitative Analysis of Common Concerns about Challenges Facing Pharmacy Experiential Education Programs

“…As part of the 35-item questionnaire, respondents were asked the following open-ended question: "What are the 2 or 3 most pressing issues your professional experience program is facing today?" 13 Free-text answers were collected from May to December 2011 and downloaded to Microsoft Excel for analysis. Other data collected included type of institution (public or private) association with academic health centers, number of introductory pharmacy practice experiences (IPPEs) and advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPEs), number and position of EE faculty members/staff, and class size.…”

“…A ƙ.0.70 was considered satisfactory agreement in this analysis. 28 Final results were compared to results of a similar survey conducted in 2001 13 to determine how concerns have changed over time.…”

“…Faculty members and administrators in EE programs will now be faced with new challenges, in addition to existing difficulties in student placement capacity created by dramatic growth in number of pharmacy schools and student enrollments in recent years. [2][3][4][5][6][7][8] Even though many schools have expanded and reorganized their EE programs, [9][10][11][12][13] further reorganization may be necessary to realign job responsibilities with the new emphasis on quality improvement, preceptor development, and interprofessional education. 14,15 Now is a good time take stock of all concerns facing EE programs so that appropriate changes can be made to meet new accreditation standards.…”

“…22 In 2011, Danielson et al disseminated a survey analyzing the curricular, personnel, and financial characteristics of EE programs to EE directors across the United States. 13 As part of the survey, respondents were asked to describe the most pressing issues facing their EE programs. The results of this question were subsequently analyzed and are reported in this paper, so that additional insight from faculty members directly involved in administering EE programs could be shared publicly as many seek strategies for implementing new accreditation standards.…”

“…No difference was found in number of EE faculty member and staff between public and private schools. 13 Large and very large schools seemed more concerned about preceptor development and stipends than medium schools, and very large schools were most concerned about quality assurance compared to others.…”