Enhancing Pharmacy Student Learning and Perceptions of Medical Apps

Identifying Pertinent Digital Health Topics to Incorporate into Self-Care Pharmacy Education

The ever-evolving landscape of digital health technology has dramatically enhanced patients' ability to manage their health through self-care effectively. These advancements have created various categories of self-care products, including medication management, health tracking, and wellness. There is no published research regarding integrating digital health into pharmacy self-care courses. This study aims to identify pertinent digital health devices and applications to incorporate into self-care course education. Digital health limitations, challenges incorporating digital health in self-care pharmacy education, and potential solutions are also reviewed. In conducting this research, many resources, including PubMed, APhA, ASHP, fda.gov, and digital.health, were reviewed in March 2024 to gather information on digital health devices and applications. To supplement this, targeted keyword searches were conducted on topics such as "digital health", "devices", "applications", "technology", and "self-care" across various online platforms. We identified digital health devices and applications suitable for self-care education across eight topics, as follows: screening, insomnia, reproductive disorders, eye disorders, home medical equipment, GI disorders, pediatrics, and respiratory disorders. Among these topics, wellness screening had the most digital health products available. For all other topics, at least three or more products were identified as relevant to self-care curriculum. By equipping students with digital health knowledge, they can effectively apply it in patient care throughout their rotations and future practice. Many digital health products, including telemedicine, electronic health records, mobile health applications, and wearable devices, are ideal for inclusion in pharmacy curriculum as future educational material. Future research is needed to develop the best strategies for incorporating relevant digital health into self-care education and defining the best student-learning strategies.

Digital literacy in undergraduate pharmacy education: a scoping review

OBJECTIVES

Conduct a scoping review to identify the approaches used to integrate digital literacy into undergraduate pharmacy programs across different countries, focusing on methods for education, training, and assessment.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Following the Joanna Briggs Institute methodology, we searched 5 electronic databases in June 2022: MEDLINE (Ovid), PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and CINAHL. Three independent reviewers screened all articles; data extraction was conducted by 2 reviewers. Any discrepancies were arbitrated by 2 additional reviewers.

RESULTS

Out of 624 articles, 57 were included in this review. Educational and training approaches for digital literacy in undergraduate pharmacy programs encompassed a theoretical understanding of health informatics, familiarization with diverse digital technologies, and applied informatics in 2 domains: patient-centric care through digital technologies, and the utilization of digital technologies in interprofessional collaboration. Blended pedagogical strategies were commonly employed. Assessment approaches included patient plan development requiring digital information retrieval, critical appraisal of digital tools, live evaluations of telehealth skills, and quizzes and exams on health informatics concepts. External engagement with system developers, suppliers, and other institutes supported successful digital literacy education.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION

This scoping review identifies various learning objectives, teaching, and assessment strategies to incorporate digital literacy in undergraduate pharmacy curricula. Recommendations include acknowledging the evolving digital health landscape, ensuring constructive alignment between learning objectives, teaching approach and assessments, co-development of digital literacy courses with stakeholders, and using standardized guidelines for reporting educational interventions. This study provides practical suggestions for enhancing digital literacy education in undergraduate pharmacy programs.

Impact of a Digital Tool on Pharmacy Students' Ability to Perform Medication Reviews: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Digital Medication Review Tools (DMRTs) are increasingly important in pharmacy practice. To ensure that young pharmacists are sufficiently competent to perform medication reviews after graduation, the introduction of DMRTs teaching in academic education is necessary. The aim of our study was to demonstrate the effect of DMRTs use on pharmacy students' performance when conducting a medication review (MR) in a randomized controlled pre-post design. Forty-one pharmacy students were asked to complete a MR within 60 min, followed by a 10-min consultation with (intervention group) and without a DMRT (control group). The MR performance was subdivided into four categories: communication skills, subjective and objective patient data, assessment, and plan. Performance was assessed using objective structured clinical examinations (OSCEs) and analytical checklists. With the use of DMRTs, the overall performance was improved by 17.0% compared to the control group (p < 0.01). Improvement through DMRTs was seen in the subcategories "Assessment" and "Plan". Furthermore, pharmacy students liked using DMRTs and felt more confident overall. Our study results demonstrate that DMRTs improve the performance of MRs, hence DMRTs should become an integral part of pharmacy curriculum. Consequently, digitally enabled pharmacists using DMRTs will be better prepared for their professional careers in pharmacy practice.

Attitudes of an international student cohort to the Quizlet study system employed in an advanced clinical health care review course

Computer-based learning applications and mobile technology have transformed many aspects of the educational experience over the last decade, producing software aimed at improving learning efficiency and streamlining the presentation of course materials. One such class of software, purpose-created to take advantage of spaced learning and spaced testing principles, are electronic flashcard applications. We provide a perspective on the novel use of the Quizlet flashcard application in a tertiary educational setting. To reduce cognitive load for international graduate dental students taking a pharmacology review course, we implemented Quizlet, which integrates both spaced learning and self-testing, to improve the student learning experience. This study assessed students' perceptions of the Quizlet flashcard system in a student cohort comprised of two consecutive years' classes (n = 51 students in total). Results indicated broad acceptance of Quizlet based on ease of use of the software and ease of study of the material. Our data provide insight into the use of this common software in a professional healthcare tertiary education setting and further demonstrate the successful application of electronic flashcards for a mixed international student cohort. Further research should include an assessment of the impact of flashcard on long-term knowledge retention in this setting.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10639-022-11371-3.

Perception of Technology-Enhanced Learning by Medical Students: an Integrative Review

This review aims to explore the perception of technology-enhanced learning by medical students. From the initial 2947 records found, 38 studies from journals indexed in the Web of Science database were included after screening. Several main topics were isolated, based on a thematic analysis: student's attitude towards e-learning and modern technologies in medical education; social networks, video, and mobile devices as information source and communication tool; and barriers to the use of technologies in medical education. The results have shown that a positive attitude towards technologies in medical education and learning is prevalent among students. The popularity of blended learning was confirmed.

The role of self-efficacy, flexibility, and gender in pharmacy students' health information technology readiness

INTRODUCTION

Pharmacy students' characteristics and attitudes towards health information technology (HIT) may influence their willingness to learn, adopt, and utilize technology in healthcare settings. Future pharmacists will play a key role in the successful implementation of HIT, yet their technology readiness is not well understood. The goal of this study was to understand pharmacy students' attitudes regarding HIT and identify personal characteristics and psychosocial factors that predict their readiness to use HIT in future clinical practice.

METHODS

Using an anonymous online survey, data were collected from 148 pharmacy students. Linear regression modeling was used to determine if gender, flexible thinking, and openness to using technology, and technology self-efficacy were associated with students' readiness to utilize HIT tools in future clinical practice.

RESULTS

Regression modeling successfully explained 15% of the variance in predicting students' readiness to utilize HIT tools: F(3, 144) = 8.31, p < 0.001 with an R2 of 0.148 (adj R² = 0.13). Greater information technology self-efficacy, more openness to change (in academic/work settings), and being male were associated with readiness to utilize HIT.

CONCLUSIONS

With the increased adoption of HIT in pharmacy practice, innovative approaches to HIT education are needed. Curricula that help students overcome obstacles to embracing technology may now be warranted. With enhanced training and engagement involving more than just didactic lessons, pharmacy students may not only feel confident in their ability to embrace HIT in future practice but feel professional satisfaction, increasing the likelihood for improved patient care and health system sustainability.

Mobile learning in dentistry: usage habits, attitudes and perceptions of undergraduate students

Introduction

The aim of this study was to evaluate usage habits, attitudes and perceptions towards mobile learning (m-learning), as well as to identify variables related to those attitudes amongst undergraduate dental students.

Materials and Methods

The study consists of 81 dental undergraduate students who who volunteered to participate. The data collection tool consists of an m-learning attitude scale, a questionnaire, and open-ended questions. To compare the total scores and factors of m-learning attitude scale for demographic information and mobile technology usage habits of the students; the Mann-Whitney U test was used for two independent groups such as gender, presence of electronic devices, and places of Internet usage. The Kruskal-Wallis test was also used to compare the total scores and factors of m-learning attitude scale for more than two independent groups including internet usage purposes and opinions. Spearman's correlation coefficient was performed, and linear regression analysis was used to predict the change in total score according to the purposes of Internet usage.

Results

The majority of students thought that the use of mobile devices in dentistry courses was useful and their attitudes towards m-learning were high. The students generally use the Internet for online shopping, connecting to social networks, and communication. They tend to use mobile technologies for personal use, followed by educational purposes. There were significant differences found in the m-learning attitudes for gender, having a portable power supply and use of mobile devices in dentistry courses. Communication was found significant in predicting the change in total score for the m-learning attitude scale according to the purpose of Internet usage.

Conclusion

Dental students have generally positive attitudes towards m-learning. Students raise awareness towards the promise of m-learning in order to apply their individual technology use and learning behaviours. Designing learning materials and applications for mobile devices may increase students' performances.

Uso de las bases de datos científicas en estudiantes de enfermería, factores influyentes

Introducción: El Modelo de Aceptación Tecnológica (TAM), ha sido ampliamente utilizado para predecir el uso de bases de datos científicas (BDC). No obstante, es preciso indagar el peso de otras variables identificadas en la revisión de la literatura. Objetivo: Identificar los factores influyentes en la aceptación y uso de las bases de datos científicas por parte de los estudiantes de la carrera de enfermería de una universidad privada. Método: El estudio tiene un diseño no experimental, transversal de tipo descriptivo y correlacional. Se aplicó un cuestionario a estudiantes de la carrera de Enfermería (Chile). Se realizó un análisis basado en regresión de mínimos cuadrados parciales en SmartPLS. Resultados: Se corroboran como variables predictoras del uso de BDC a las variables TAM (intención de uso, utilidad y facilidad de uso) y a otras variables externas al modelo (obligatoriedad, las habilidades informacionales y el entrenamiento en tecnologías). Discusión: La evidencia identifica que una de las principales barreras en el uso de las BDC son las habilidades informacionales y digitales para su utilización. Conclusiones: Se hace necesario incorporar nuevas metodologías para aumentar la competencia de los estudiantes con el uso de estas bases, para este efecto se consideraron las variables que resultaron predictoras.

Medical apps used during advanced pharmacy practice experiences

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

The purpose of this study was to determine what type of medical applications (apps) are being used by fourth-year students during advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPEs).

EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY AND SETTING

Recent doctor of pharmacy school graduates were surveyed pertaining to their use of medical apps on APPEs, frequency of use for select apps, willingness to buy apps and at what cost, and their perceived importance on using medical apps in their pharmacy practice. The survey concluded by inquiring if medical apps should be taught in the pharmacy curriculum.

FINDINGS

Ninety of 132 recent graduates responded to the survey and over 97% of the students used medical apps on their APPEs. Lexicomp^®, UpToDate^® and the Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease (ASCVD) Risk calculator were the most frequently used applications during APPEs. Of those surveyed, 83% believe that medical apps should be taught in pharmacy school.

DISCUSSION AND SUMMARY

Medical apps are frequently used on APPEs. It may be prudent to teach students how to use and evaluate medical apps before going on experiences so that students and patients can get the most benefit from these tools.

Digital health evaluation workshop for interprofessional healthcare students

The use of online resources by patients for their daily health needs has escalated with the proliferation of mobile devices and mobile apps. While healthcare professionals can help their patients access quality online resources and tools, they may not have received the education and training to do this effectively. To meet this educational need, a daylong workshop was developed at a health sciences university that aimed to increase awareness of students in various health disciplines of mobile health-related apps and federally sponsored websites that provide patient-friendly medical information.