A semester-long critical thinking course in the first semester of pharmacy school: Impact on critical thinking skills

INTRODUCTION

To determine whether critical thinking improved after student-pharmacists participated in a semester-long critical thinking course in the first semester of pharmacy school.

METHODS

Students took the Health Sciences Reasoning Test-Numeracy (HSRT-N) on the first and last day of the course. The overall HSRT-N score, percentile ranking, and eight sub-categories within the HSRT-N (analysis, interpretation, inference, evaluation, explanation, induction, deduction, and numeracy) were evaluated. A multivariable quantile regression model evaluated the association between the post-test percentile and student age, at which campus the student was enrolled, and how many minutes the students required to take the test.

RESULTS

There were no significant differences in overall scores, percentile, or the sub-category scores with the exception of a significant increase in the analysis score and a significant decrease in the induction score. There was a greater increase for students in the lower quartiles on the pre-test compared to students in the higher quartiles on the pre-test. The largest percentile change occurred in students in the 25th-50th percentiles.

CONCLUSION

A statistically significant improvement in the analysis category of the HSRT-N and a greater increase for students in the lower quartiles on the pre-test to the post-test suggests students with the lowest quartiles on the HSRT-N would benefit the most from a critical thinking course.

Restraint stress-induced suppression of major histocompatibility complex class II expression by murine peritoneal macrophages

The macrophage plays a central role in the development of immune responses. Macrophages take up and process antigen which is presented to antigen-responsive T lymphocytes in association with major histocompatibility complex class II (Ia) glycoproteins. We have investigated the effect of restraint stress on Ia expression by murine peritoneal macrophages. Stress resulted in a suppression of Ia expression which coincided with an increase in plasma corticosterone levels. In vitro experiments indicate that suppression of Ia expression can occur within 2 h after exposure to corticosterone. The suppression of this important aspect of macrophage function by stressors has important implications regarding the possible immunosuppressive effects of stress on the response of lymphocytes to antigens that depend on intact macrophage function.