METHODS: The 2-unit leadership course was piloted among second- and third-year students in a public college of pharmacy with a 4-year doctor of pharmacy curriculum. The participating students completed the LABS-III during the first and last classes as part of a quality improvement measure for course enhancement. Rasch analysis was then used to assess the reliability and validity evidence for the LABS-III.
RESULTS: A total of 24 students participated in the pilot course. The pre and postcourse surveys had 100% and 92% response rates, respectively. After Rasch analysis model fit was achieved, the item separation for the 14 nonextreme items was 2.19 with an item reliability of 0.83. The person separation index was 2.16 with a person reliability of 0.82.
CONCLUSION: The Rasch analysis revealed that the number of LABS-III items should be decreased and that the 3-point response scale should be used to improve functionality and use in classroom settings for PharmD students in the United States. Further research is needed to augment the reliability and validity evidence of the modified instrument for use at other United States colleges of pharmacy.
OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the perceptions of dental graduates' educational environment as well as preparedness to practice, and how these two components are correlated.
METHODS: A self-administered, validated questionnaire, developed from previous studies, was distributed to dental graduates of a public Malaysian university (n = 178, response rate = 60%) via online and postal surveys. Bivariate analyses were carried out using Spearman's rank-order correlation (Spearman's Rho, significance level p
METHODS: A three-station OSCE set in a hospital and community pharmacy was designed and mapped to the World Health Organisation's AMS intervention practical guide. This OSCE comprised 39 unique cases and was implemented across two campuses (Malaysia and Australia) at one institute. Stations were 8 min long and consisted of problem-solving and applying AMS principles to drug therapy management (Station 1), counselling on key antimicrobials (Station 2) or managing infectious diseases in primary care (Station 3). Primary outcome measure to assess viability was the proportion of students who were able to pass each case.
KEY FINDINGS: Other than three cases with pass rates of 50, 52.8 and 66. 7%, all cases had pass rates of 75% or more. Students were most confident with referral to medical practitioner cases and switching from intravenous to oral or empirical to directed therapy.
CONCLUSIONS: An AMS-based OSCE is a viable assessment tool in pharmacy education. Further research should explore whether similar assessments can help improve students' confidence at recognising opportunities for AMS intervention in the workplace.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: This quality improvement project was undertaken at a private university. Guided by the PDSA model, rubber dam application tasks were conducted in the simulation lab in 2 phases. Phase 1 included TBSL and phase 2 included EBSL comprising of 2 PDSA cycles. 'Plan' stage involved obtaining feedback from students and the concerned staff. 'Do' stage included implementation of EBSL in eight steps adopted from Higgins's framework. 'Study' stage evaluated the outcomes and in 'Act' stage amendments were made to the first EBSL cycle. In the second PDSA cycle re-implementation and evaluation of the rubber dam application exercises were carried out. Descriptive data were presented as percentages and mean scores were compared using paired t-test.
RESULTS: Thirty-seven year 2 students participated in this study. A significant improvement in the mean scores was observed between TBSL and EBSL (3.02 + 0.16 and 3.91 + 0.27, respectively, p
METHODS: A bibliometric review was conducted on literature from over 23 years from January 2000 to May 2023. Articles focusing on any type of OSCE research in pharmacy education in both undergraduate and postgraduate sectors were included. Articles were excluded if they were not original articles or not published in English. A summative content analysis was also conducted to identify key topics.
RESULTS: A total of 192 articles were included in the analysis. There were 242 institutions that contributed to the OSCE literature in pharmacy education, with the leading country being Canada. Most OSCE research came from developed countries and were descriptive studies based on single institution data. The top themes emerging from content analysis were student perceptions on OSCE station styles (n = 98), staff perception (n = 19), grade assessment of OSCEs (n = 145), interprofessional education (n = 11), standardized patients (n = 12), and rubric development and standard setting (n = 8).
IMPLICATIONS: There has been a growth in virtual OSCEs, interprofessional OSCEs, and artificial intelligence OSCEs. Communication rubrics and minimizing assessor variability are still trending research areas. There is scope to conduct more research on evaluating specific types of OSCEs, when best to hold an OSCE, and comparing OSCEs to other assessments.
METHODS: MOOC participants were invited to take part in an anonymous online survey examining their knowledge of IR and how they applied it in their professional practice approximately 1-1.5 years after completing their course. The survey contained 43 open-ended, multiple choice and Likert-type questions. Descriptive statistics were calculated for the quantitative data and responses to the open-ended questions were thematically coded.
RESULTS: A total of 748 MOOC participants responded to the survey. The demographic profile of the survey respondents aligned with that of the MOOC participants, with nearly 70% of respondents originating from Africa. Responses to the quantitative and open-ended survey questions revealed that respondents' knowledge of IR had improved to a large extent as a result of the MOOC, and that they used the knowledge and skills gained in their professional lives frequently and had consequently changed their professional behaviour. Respondents most often cited the problem-solving aspect of IR as a substantial area of behavioral change influenced by participating in the MOOC.
CONCLUSIONS: These findings indicate that the MOOC was successful in targeting learners from LMICs, in strengthening their IR knowledge and contributing to their ability to apply it in their professional practice. The utility of MOOCs for providing IR training to learners in LMICs, where implementation challenges are encountered often, makes this platform an ideal standalone learning tool or one that could be combined with other training formats.
DESIGN: A cross sectional study.
METHOD: A self-administered online survey was used from August to October 2022, with a sample size of 417 nursing students selected through convenience sampling. Descriptive statistics, correlation analyses, and PROCESS macro v4.1 (Model 4) were used for data analysis.
RESULTS: The results revealed that virtual learning infrastructure, access to electronic facilities, and student collaboration, significantly predict student computer competency and e-learning outcomes. Virtual learning infrastructure and access to electronic facilities were found to be the strongest predictors of student computer competency, while student collaboration had a smaller but still significant effect. Student computer competency was found to mediate the relationship between virtual learning infrastructure, access to electronic facilities, student collaboration, and e-learning outcomes.
METHODS: We followed a systematic approach for the development of a framework about e-professionalism. Qualitative data was collected from a systematic review and a delphi study, while quantitative data was collected by administering a validated questionnaire social networking sites for medical education (snsme). Subsequently, categorization of the selected data and identifying concepts, deconstruction and further categorizing concepts (philosophical triangulation), integration of concepts (theoretical triangulation), and synthesis and resynthesis of concepts were performed.
RESULTS: The initial process yielded six overlapping concepts from personal, professional, character (implicit) and characteristic (explicit) domains: environment, behavior, competence, virtues, identity, and mission. Further integration of data was done for the development of the medical education e-professionalism (meep) framework with a central concept of a commitment to mission. The mission showed deep connections with values (conformity, beneficence, universalism, and integrity), behaviours (communication, self-awareness, tolerance, power), and identity (reflection, conscientiousness, self-directed, self-actualization). The data demonstrated that all medical professionals require updated expertise in sns participation.
CONCLUSION: The meep framework recognises a mission-based social contract by the medical community. This mission is largely driven by professional values, behaviors and identity. Adherence to digital standards, accountability, empathy, sensitivity, and commitment to society are essential elements of the meep framework.
Methods: . In the mentored student project (MSP) programme at Melaka Manipal Medical College, students undertake a short-term group research project under the guidance of their mentor. After data collection and analysis, students are required to write an abstract, present a poster and also write individual reflective summaries of their research experience. We evaluated the MSP programme using reflective summaries of a batch of undergraduate medical students. Data from 41 reflective summaries were analysed using the thematic analysis approach. The learning outcomes at the third and fourth levels of the Kirkpatrick evaluation model were determined from the summaries.
Results: . Students' reflective summaries indicated that they were satisfied with the MSP experience. In all the summaries, there was a mention of an improvement in teamwork skills through MSP. Improved relations with mentors were another relevant outcome. Improvement in communication skills and a positive change related to research attitude were also reported by students.
Conclusions: . Reflective summaries as a means to evaluate the MSP programme was found to be an easy, feasible and cost-effective method. The qualitative approach adopted for data analysis enabled the programme coordinators to assess the strengths and barriers of the programme.