Unique collaboration between a private college of pharmacy and a private academic health system

Strategies to Reduce the Cost of Medical Education in India: A Narrative Review

Background The global population is being plagued by several diseases and health conditions, and this calls for the need to adopt a strategy to enable people from all socioeconomic backgrounds to have the freedom and choice to opt for a medical profession as their career. The purpose of the current review is to explore the reasons which make medical education expensive and identify the strategies by which the cost of medical education can be minimized.

Methods An extensive search of all materials related to the topic was performed on the PubMed search engine and web site of the National Medical Commission. Relevant research articles focusing on costs in medical education published in the period 2005 to 2021 were included in the review. A total of 37 articles were selected based on their suitability with the current review objectives and analyzed. Keywords used in the search include medical education and cost in the title alone only.

Results We have to accept the fact that medical education is quite expensive and that's not the case with one nation but the trend is worldwide. It is the need of the hour to plan and implement strategies that make medical training accessible and available to people from all socioeconomic classes and regardless of other variables.

Conclusion In conclusion, the process of training medical students is expensive and accounts for a wide range of impacts on the medical aspirants. Thus, there is an indispensable need for the policy makers and the concerned stakeholders to join their hands together and take appropriate steps to minimize the overall cost of medical training, and thereby making it affordable to everyone.

Evaluation of an Interprofessional Academic-Practice Partnership in End of Life Care

Introduction: The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to evaluate an interprofessional academic-practice partnership in end of life care by examining patient medication outcomes, the contributions of student pharmacists and a pharmacy preceptor to care teams, and student learning experiences. Methods: Retrospective chart review assessed polypharmacy differences in hospice patients with a primary terminal diagnosis of non-Alzheimer's dementia between two patient groups; Group 1 managed on interprofessional care teams within the pharmacy partnership, and Group 2, managed on teams without a pharmacist. Team members who interacted with student pharmacists and the pharmacy preceptor participated in semi-structured key informant interviews to document perceptions of pharmacy contributions to care teams and the organization. At the end of their APPE, students completed reflective writings regarding their learning. Results: Patients in Group 1 were on statistically significant fewer medications than Group 2 at both week 4 and weeks 7-12 following admission. Five conceptual themes emerged from interviews: pharmacists as team medication experts, improved patient outcomes, interprofessional collaboration, patient/caregiver trust in medication regimens, and desire for sustainability. Student reflections included the following learning themes: teamwork, respect, value, and patient-centered care. Conclusions: The addition of a pharmacist on interprofessional care teams decreased the average number of medications in the non-Alzheimer's end of life patient population. Team members identified value-added contributions of student pharmacists and the pharmacy preceptor that enhanced team efficiency and patient care. Student pharmacists recognized these contributions and the experience served as an exemplar of interprofessional practice.

Clinical Track Program Expansion Increases Rotation Capacity for Experiential Program

Objective. To evaluate the rotation capacity at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy and see if the implementation of clinical track programs across the state correlates to an increase in rotation capacity for the school. Methods. The following information was collected: number of preceptors over the years in the school's experiential learning program, number of clinical track programs from 2012 to 2015, rotation type, availability submissions per rotation type per year, and availability submissions per hospital participant in the clinical track program per year. The rotation capacity and rotation types from 2012 to 2015 academic years were assessed and compared to see if there was any impact on the clinical track programs implemented. Results. There was no statistically significant difference in the frequency distribution of rotation types among all sites from 2012 through 2015 academic years. However, there was a statistically significant difference in the total number/capacity of rotations from 2012 to 2015 academic years. There were also statistically significant differences in the rotation capacity in all sites except for three sites. Conclusion. Adding clinical track programs can help increase the capacity of a school's clinical rotations.