Geoff March

Developing and evaluating a model for pharmaceutical care in Australian community pharmacies

Objective — To develop and evaluate a medication management service. The service was based on the principles of pharmaceutical care and targeted patients at risk of medication misadventure, primarily elderly patients, in five community pharmacies.

Enhancing Continuity of Care in Therapeutics: Development of a Post-Discharge Home Medicines Review Model

The Australian Pharmaceutical Advisory Council guidelines for the continuum of quality use of medicines between hospital and community aim to establish a coordinated approach that encourages continuity in all areas of health care and the community. However, the implementation of these guidelines has been problematic.

Classification of Findings in the Home Medicines Reviews of Post‐Discharge Patients at Risk of Medication Misadventure

The risk of medication misadventure for patients is greatest during times of change, particularly on discharge from hospital. Patients at high risk of medication misadventure post‐discharge should be identified and provided with interventions to ensure the quality use of medicines and positive health outcomes. Home medicines reviews (HMRs) can be used to improve patient health outcomes and reduce the risk of medication misadventure.

Nationwide collaborative development of learning outcomes and exemplar standards for Australian pharmacy programmes

Internationally, the preparation of pharmacy graduates for professional practice has evolved from educating for capacities for practice, to a focus on competencies, and most recently, on assuring graduate outcomes. Consequently, there is an increasing emphasis on the specification of and accountability around student learning outcomes. This, in turn, has implications for teaching and assessment. The aim of the study was to harmonise the various expectations and regulatory requirements for Australian pharmacy education programmes through the development of learning outcomes and exemplar standards for all entry‐level pharmacy graduates.

Enhancing learning in clinical placements : reflective practice, self- assessment, rubrics and scaffolding

Professional preparatory health programmes generally involve clinical placements with a focus on integration of theory into real life practice. Reflective writing is often included in the assessment requirements for clinical placement courses. However enabling students to engage in deeper levels of reflective writing in action, on action and for action requires careful scaffolding and assessment task design within university clinical placement handbooks. The purpose of this case study was to explore iterative refinement of assessment exercises within clinical placement handbook activities. Specifically, the study examined students’ responses to counselling experiences in authentic pharmacy practice, with comparative analysis undertaken for the various versions of the assessment task. Results showed that provision of iteratively developed guidelines, provided to three different groups of students, to support students in the assessment task, increased the marks achieved for individual components of the assessment. The results provide insight into how the design of these types of assessment exercises can be improved.

Australian intern pharmacists’ perceived preparedness for practice, and their expectations and experiences of the internship year and future career intentions

Background: A key objective of Australia’s health care reform is a skilled, flexible, and welltrained workforce. To meet these requirements, the training of health professionals, including pharmacists, needs to be focused on patient care processes, and students must develop competencies in the delivery of patient care. Pharmacy graduates need to be well prepared for new and alternative career pathways through their education and training, to be a part of the future workforce. This study explores Australian intern pharmacists’ perceived preparedness for practice, the match between their expectations and experience to meet the requirements of health professionals in Australia’s health care reforms, and their future career intentions. Methods: Two questionnaires were sent by post to all 136 intern pharmacists in South Australia; one was sent early in their internship and the second follow-up questionnaire was sent near the

Cost implications of the delivery of pharmaceutical care services through Australian community pharmacies

Objective — To conduct a cost analysis of the Community Pharmacy Model Practices project in South Australia.

Pharmacists' roles in nursing homes in Malaysia

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