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• Undergraduate study:
• Courses
• Order a prospectus
• How to apply
• Information for applicants
• Why choose Kingston University
• Disability and mental health support
• Accommodation
• Undergraduate fees
• Fees, funding and payments
• Access, participation and inclusion

The Role of the Pharmacist

• Module code: PY4020
• Year: 2018/9
• Level: 4
• Credits: 30
• Pre-requisites: None
• Co-requisites: None

Summary

This module is a core requirement for students reading the MPharm degree. The module introduces the principles of the role of a professional pharmacist and the pharmacist's various responsibilities in providing healthcare or support for healthcare.  You will be introduced to the principles of health and well being, as well as providing a foundation to responding to symptoms and health promotion knowledge. Basic pharmaceutical skills will be developed including those of dispensing, analysing prescriptions, performing calculations, dosage forms and recognising adverse drug reactions and interactions. An introduction to communication skills will be provided together with critical appraisal, presentation and scientific report writing all with the emphasis to application in pharmacy.

Aims

• To introduce the professional GPhC Standards for pharmacy professionals and its application to pharmacy students and the importance of professionalism
• To illustrate the roles and responsibilities of pharmacists by placing students for two days in a hospital or community pharmacy
• To develop essential verbal, non-verbal and written communication skills as needed for the practice of pharmacy, for future interaction with patients and other healthcare professionals through interprofessional education (IPE)
• To analyse and interpret prescriptions when dispensing commercially produced preparations including skills of extemporaneous dispensing.
• To develop basic skills and knowledge required for responding to symptoms and patient counselling

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of the module, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate effective communication skills and the ability to collect, evaluate and assimilate information through verbal and written presentation
• Demonstrate knowledge of the Standards for pharmacy professionals, the structure and function of the General Pharmaceutical Council, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and their role in maintaining professional standards
• Discuss the different roles of pharmacists in community, hospital and industrial settings, including their level of involvement in patient care
• Be able to respond to symptoms/answering queries relating to common parasitic conditions
• Carry out dispensing of simple commercially-produced preparations and produce a suitable label for the dispensed products
• Discuss the main considerations in health promotion and public health and the role of the pharmacist.

Curriculum content

• Verbal and non-verbal communication skills required for patient and inter-professional interaction
• The application of word-processing, databases, information retrieval in the production of scientific reports/presentations
• Pharmacists' ethics and standards of professional performance
• The structure and function of professional regulation, the pharmaceutical register, and the General Pharmaceutical Council
• The varied role of community, hospital and industrial pharmacists, delivered by outside lecturers or teacher-practitioners
• Practical classes to augment teaching of: analysis of prescriptions for commercially manufactured prescription only medicines, their labeling, good dispensing practice and endorsement
• Dispensing of simple commercially produced preparations from bulk containers
• Introduction to the law pertaining to dispensing
• Perform calculations relevant to pharmacy practice
• Reference sources used in pharmacy such as the British National Formulary (BNF), Medicine Ethics and Practice (MEP), websites, Department of Health information and journals
• Use treatment guidelines/evidence base such as NSFs, NICE and SIGN guidance, local protocols and formularies
• Medicines information
• Health promotion (primary, secondary, tertiary), methods of promotion, policy documents, health education and public health and the role of the pharmacist
• Responding to symptoms relating to questioning methods and symptom diagnosis
• Drug interactions and how to handle in practice (using problem-solving exercises in practical classes)
• Review of evidence for product selection when responding to symptoms
• The demand for and types of complementary therapy; evidence of safety, efficacy and quality and issues of regulation; pharmacists' involvement
• Social research methods relevant to pharmacy practice research including qualitative and quantitative methods
• Foundations of social theory and the application of sociology to pharmacy, seeking medical advice, the patient-health professional relationship, consulting a pharmacist
• Compliance/adherence, reasons for non-adherence, illness and medication beliefs, the concept of concordance and the pharmacist's role
• The National Health Service, its inception, development, reform and current structure
• Clinical concepts, medical terminology, abbreviations, patient history taking and pharmaceutical care

Teaching and learning strategy

Lectures provide the essential information in each subject area and guide students in directed reading. Practical sessions include dispensing of commercially available products which are designed to consolidate the students' good dispensing practice and understanding of the relevant law needed as a pharmacist. Workshops and problem based learning are used so that students can gain knowledge and experience in how theory can be applied in practice. Coursework assignments build in-depth knowledge of specific areas within pharmacy practice and include writing a scientific report to develop written communication and calculation skills. Independent learning ability is developed through directed reading as a supplement to formal teaching.  Guided independent study includes consolidation of lecture notes with additional reading and preparation for test and the end-of-module examination.

Breakdown of Teaching and Learning Hours

Assessment strategy

Summative assessment will be through a three hour end of module examination consisting typically of three sections: Section A; (MCQ\SBAs), Section B; a range of short answer questions and Section C; long answer questions. The exam will be worth 50% of the module. An in module assessment, in the form of an in class test, will be used not only as a summative assessment but also to give students feedback on their progress and performance to date. Communication skills will be assessed, along with critical appraisal skills and clinical knowledge in a patient case presentation. As this is small group work it will also help develop students' team working skills.

Level 4 MPharm students are required to pass a synoptic OSCE style assessment and a synoptic calculations test before they can progress to Level 5. These are to assure that even at this Level the student is demonstrating the appropriate skills, knowledge, understanding and attributes to become a future pharmacist. Much of the learning in this module feeds forward into these synoptic assessments.

A range of formative assessments undertaken both in-class (workshop and practical) and during independent study, of relatively short duration will be set periodically on content determined by the module leader. During practical sessions some of these will be in the form of Mini OSCEs (Objective Structured Clinical Examination) which are designed to assess competence and practical ability.  This will provide regular feedback to students so that they can develop and awareness of their rate and level of progress and of their strengths and weaknesses. In addition, there is an in module assessment, consisting of an in class test, which will also be used to provide detailed feedback to students on their rate and level of progress. On-going discussion via the personal tutor and module leader will assist the student in the development of strategies for improvement and enhancement.

Mapping of Learning Outcomes to Assessment Strategy (Indicative)

Elements of Assessment

Achieving a pass

It is a requirement that the major elements of assessment are passed separately in order to achieve an overall pass for the module.

Bibliography core texts

You will need to have a copy of one of these:

• Community Pharmacy: Symptoms, Diagnosis and Treatment, Paul Rutter. Churchill Livingstone (2008). ISBN 0702029955
• Symptoms in the Pharmacy: A Guide to the Management of Common Illness (6^th Ed), Blenkinsopp, Paxton and Blenkinsopp. Wiley Publishing (2008), ISBN 9781405122221

• Minor illness or major disease (4^th edition), Edwards and Stillman, Pharmaceutical Press (2006). ISBN 978 0 85369 627 8
• FASTtrack: Managing Symptoms in the Pharmacy
  (1^st edition) Alan Nathan, Pharmaceutical Press (2007). ISBN 9780853697275
• British National Formulary, latest edition, edited by Dinesh K Mehta. Pharmaceutical Press. ISBN 0 85369 556 3 (also at BNF website)
• Health Promotion for Pharmacists (Second edition), A. Blenkinsopp, R. S. Panton, and C. Anderson. Oxford University Press (1999). ISBN 019263004X
• Handbook of Pharmacy Health Education (Second Edition), Robin J Harman. Pharmaceutical Press (2006). ISBN 0 85369 471 0
• Dale and Appelbe's Pharmacy Law and Ethics (Ninth edition), Gordon E Appelbe, and Joy Wingfield. Pharmaceutical Press (2009). ISBN: 978-0-85369-872
• Medicines, Ethics & Practice: The professional guide for pharmacists, (Edition 35). Pharmaceutical Press (Aug 2011) ISBN 978-0 85369 958-3 (latest edition can be found on the RPS website. 
• The British Pharmacopoeia 2012, G. B. Medicines Commission. The Stationary Office. ISBN 978-0113228-690
• Pharmaceutical Practice (Fourth edition), A. J. Winfield, and R. M. E Richards. Churchill Livingstone (2009)
• British National Formulary, Edition 62: September 2011, edited by Dinesh K Mehta. Pharmaceutical Press. (Most recent version is available on the BNF website)

Bibliography recommended reading

• Non-prescription medicines (Second edition), Alan Nathan. Pharmaceutical Press (2006). ISBN 0853696446
• Complementary therapies for pharmacists, Steven B Kayne. Pharmaceutical Press (2002). ISBN 0 85369 430 3
• Dietary supplements (Second edition), Pamela Mason. Pharmaceutical Press (2007). ISBN 0 85369 459 1
• The Good Study Guide, Andrew Northedge (Second Revised Edition). Open University Worldwide (2005). ISBN 0 7492 59744
• Communication Skills in Pharmacy Practice: a Practical Guide for Students and Practitioners (Fifth Edition), William Tindall, Robert S Beardsley. Carole L Kimberlin. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (2002), ISBN: 0 781765986
• The Pharmaceutical Journal
• Blackstone's Pharmacy Law and Practice, Kenneth Mullan. Blackstone Press (2002). ISBN 1 85431 940 X
• Evidence Based Practice, Ed. C. Bond, Pharmaceutical Press (2000) ISBN: 978 0 85369 436 6