Pharmaceutical care = more than medication

Oct 31st, 2014

Heidi Wicks

Drs. John Hawboldt and Beverly FitzPatrick are developing methods around teaching critical thinking and communications.
Pharmaceutical care = more than medication

The scholarship of teaching and learning

A recent study in the American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education rated communication and critical thinking skills among the top five attributes that graduating pharmacy students should have. These skills are as important for pharmacists as drug related knowledge.

Drs. John Hawboldt and Beverly FitzPatrick (School of Pharmacy) are using research to inform teaching and learning, and vice versa, by focusing a new study on the assessment and improvement of students’ skills in these areas.

Dr. Hawboldt explained that one of the goals of pharmacy education is to teach students to think critically.

“They need to be taught to think critically in a variety of situations. Communication is another skill that pharmacy students need instruction to master. Our graduates have a responsibility to communicate their knowledge with other health care professionals in all disciplines, to their patients and to the public, so they have to be taught to convey information to a clear, succinct manner to specific audiences.”

In the study, the students complete five written assessments that require critical thinking and communication skills about specific pharmacy cases. After each exam, Drs. Hawboldt and FitzPatrick teach a class where they work with the students to explicitly address how they can improve these skills in their exam responses and other relevant pharmacy cases.

Third year student Elisabeth Gesch is pleased that critical thinking is being focused on.

“Students become frustrated when memorisation alone doesn’t grant them top marks, yet memorizing facts and lecture notes doesn’t produce an effective pharmacist. We will use these skills throughout our careers, and I have no doubt that we will all enhance our knowledge and skills during this process.”

Over time, the study will help to produce practice-ready pharmacists who are complex thinkers and can offer their patients the absolute best care and information.

Teaching mental wellness

“Being a good pharmacist is about making a connection with patients and establishing relationships based on mutual trust and respect,” Dr. Phillips begins her first lecture in Pharmacy 5401: Major Depressive Disorder by using scenes from the 1980 film Ordinary People to highlight the impact of stigma in mental disorders.

The film tells the story of Beth (Mary Tyler Moore), Calvin (Donald Sutherland), and their son Conrad (Timothy Hutton), who are struggling to come to terms with the death of their son and Conrad’s brother. Conrad, overcome by grief and depression, attempts suicide and is hospitalised.

“I try to get students to look at depression from all points of view. What thoughts and feelings do they have when caring for a patient like Conrad; (and) what thoughts and feelings do they think he has when he shows up to get his prescription filled? We explore the sources of stigma, including the stigma that depressed people place against themselves,” she explained.

Stigmatizing attitudes about mental illness can prevent many individuals from seeking and accepting treatment.

“Only about half of individuals suffering from depression seek help and less than half of those get properly diagnosed and receive adequate treatment. Over 40% of patients who receive medication therapy have stopped taking their antidepressant by the third month.  Obstacles to care - features of the illness itself like pessimism, poor memory, lack of motivation, a lag time to medication response, side effects and cost of the medication - can all work against recovery.”

Dr. Phillips believes that pharmacists are uniquely positioned to care for individuals suffering from depression and other mental health problems. 

“By providing a compassionate and non-judgemental environment that instils hope, provides education and supports adherence to treatment, pharmacists can help defeat stigma and optimise patient care,” she said.  “Mental health issues are real illnesses, not character flaws.  We talk about cancer survivors openly, maybe its time we talked about depression survivors or anxiety survivors.”