Journal of Advances in Medical Education & Professionalism

Professionalism ethics in pharmacy education: Do students have acceptable knowledge or it is a white paper in pharmacy education curriculum?

HOSSEIN KHOLGHIPOUR; ALI DEHSHAHRI; HOSSEIN MAHMOODIAN

Volume 6, Issue 4 , October 2018, , Pages 190-191

https://doi.org/10.30476/jamp.2018.41033

Abstract

Dear Editor, In pharmacy, professionalism must containthe skills necessary to be a capable pharmacypractitioner. It seems that pharmacy studentsdo not become professionals after graduationfrom ... Read More Dear Editor, In pharmacy, professionalism must containthe skills necessary to be a capable pharmacypractitioner. It seems that pharmacy studentsdo not become professionals after graduationfrom the pharmacy school. To be a professionalpharmacist, students should have a lifelongcommitment to the society and patients.Evolving professional knowledge, attitudesand behaviors is a critical step in providinghigh quality patient care (1). In the last previousyears, pharmacy practice has changed from drugprescription to patient-centered communicationand more stress on pharmacists’ accountabilityfor the best treatment outcomes. Thus,pharmacists are accountable for providing goodhealth care facilities. In this regard, pharmacistsshould cooperate well with other health careprofessionals and patients (2).An important component of professionalismin pharmacy is ethics education (3). The necessityof ethics education in pharmacy highlightsthe significance of ethical considerationsby pharmacists (2). The significant servicedelivered by pharmacists in Iran is respondingthe patients’ questions. Therefore, pharmacistsmust be up to date with ethical issues and applythe best ethical responses to different patients’problems (2). In Shiraz University of MedicalSciences, the medical ethics department isresponsible for ethics education for all medicaland paramedical students including pharmacystudents. This education consists of one weekworkshop including important issues in pharmacyethics. This is a part of core pharmacy educationcurriculum and all of the students shouldparticipate in this course.In order to measure the students’ knowledgeabout ethics in pharmacy education, weconducted a survey with an 18 item valid andreliable questionnaire containing three majordomains: truthfulness, professional commitment,respect for patients’ rights and confidentiality ofpatients’ information). 162 pharmacy studentsin 7 to 12 semesters in Shiraz pharmacy schoolwere selected through simple random samplingmethod. All of the students filled out thequestionnaire based on a 5 point Likert scale.The results showed that 14 (8.6%) students hada moderate level of knowledge, 68 (42%) had agood level of knowledge, and 80 (49.4%) hada very good level of knowledge. There was nosignificant relationship between gender andlevel of knowledge. There was a significantrelationship between the level of knowledge andeducational semester. Senior students had higherknowledge. The best results were in the domainof respect for patients’ right and confidentiality ofpatients’ information. These results showed thatstudents had an acceptable level of knowledge,especially in the field that is necessary for theirfuture profession (patients’ right and patients’confidentiality). Pharmacy students shouldestablish good relationships with each other,patients, and other health care professionals.Therefore, a professional behavior should beencouraged more than focusing on knowledge. Inthis study, it was not possible to follow the studentsin future years to measure their professionalbehavior, but it is recommended for futurestudies. However, it seems that this knowledgewill not necessarily change to improvement inpractice in pharmacist because pharmacy is not ascience of pure knowledge. The closer integrationof knowledge and practice named “practice-basedknowledge” is an important area that is essentialto be considered by pharmacists (4).Pharmacy students must remain up to datewith changes in their profession, which maycontain new practice guidelines, new pharmacyand therapeutic products, and new technologies.In order to improve the students’ professionalbehavior, they should participate in communityservices, volunteering programs, (serving andhelping others), health education services andlocal health care organizations. After graduation,participation in Continuing ProfessionalDevelopment instead of Continuing PharmacyEducation is necessary to maintain the knowledgeand behavior in this field. In ContinuingProfessional Development, learning occursin lifetime and continues after the classroomin everyday practice (5). Excellence shouldbe considered not only in the undergraduatepharmacy education, but also after graduationtraining, and during practice. Finally, it should bementioned that pharmacy students must remainknowledgeable and pursue guidance to achievethe goal of excellence in professional ethics.

The students' intentions and satisfaction with the field of study and university

ALI NOORAFSHAN; SAEEDEH POURAHMAD; MOHAMMAD MAHDI SAGHEB; ALI DEHGHANINAZHVANI; ALI DEHSHAHRI; MANIJEH ABDOLLAHI; ZEYNAB MOHEBBI; ZAHRA KESHTKARAN; AFSANEH AHMADI; SOMAYEH KAVOUSIPOUR; FARIBA FARAHMAND; HAMIDREZA KHORRAMI; ROBABEH SOLTANI; SAIED KARBALAY DOUST

Volume 2, Issue 4 , October 2014, , Pages 176-182

Abstract

Introduction: The present study aimed to find an appropriate method toinform senior high school students to correctly select their academic field ofstudy and their intentions.Methods: ... Read More Introduction: The present study aimed to find an appropriate method toinform senior high school students to correctly select their academic field ofstudy and their intentions.Methods: This is a descriptive-analytic and cross-sectional study. A verifiedquestionnaire was given to a total of 2600 students selected by stratified random sampling method (ten different colleges and entrance year from the 1st to 4th are considered as the strata). The position of the present field of study (major) among the list of the fields in the entrance exam was asked. The students’ methods of familiarity with different fields of study in Shiraz University of Medical Sciences (SUMS), the reasons for their selection, the students’ motivation and insistence on studying in the same field and university were asked in the questionnaire. Data were analyzed using independent two samples t-test, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) and Chi-Square test.Results: The most significant references for university field selection were high school teachers, the students' parents and the adjacency of university to one's living place. Also, the results revealed the good reputation of SUMS in the first year and its downward trend during the following years. 59.4% of the 1st year students were satisfied with their field of study and SUMS. 31.8% were satisfied with the university but not with their fields of study. 6.4% were dissatisfied with the university but not with their fields of study. 2% of the students were dissatisfied with both their fields of study and university. Dissatisfaction with SUMS and field of study increased little by little so that the results obtained among the students who had entered the university earlier (in the 4th year of their study) showed nearly 16.3% dissatisfaction with both the university and the study fields .Conclusion: The methods for introducing the university are recommended tobe revised.Keywords: Medical student, Intention, Satisfaction

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Author = ALI DEHSHAHRI

Professionalism ethics in pharmacy education: Do students have acceptable knowledge or it is a white paper in pharmacy education curriculum?

Abstract

The students' intentions and satisfaction with the field of study and university

Abstract