Abstract and Introduction
Abstract
Objective. To quantify the impact of pharmacy students' clinical interventions in terms of number and cost savings throughout advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPEs) using a Web-based documentation program.
Methods. Five hundred eighty doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) students completing ten 4-week APPEs during the final year of the curriculum were asked to document all clinical interventions they made using a Web-based documentation tool. Data were collected over 4 academic years.
Results. The total number of interventions made was 59,613, the total dollars saved was $8,583,681, and the average savings per intervention was $148. The top 3 categories of interventions made by students were identifying dosing issues, conducting chart reviews, and recommending appropriate therapy. The top 3 intervention types made by students that resulted in the most dollars saved per intervention were identifying potential allergic reactions, identifying drug interactions, and resolving contraindications.
Conclusions. Pharmacy students made important and cost-effective clinical interventions during their APPEs that resulted in significant savings. Documentation programs can track the number, type, and value of the interventions that pharmacy students are making.
Introduction
One of the challenges facing many colleges and schools of pharmacy is finding enough experiential sites and preceptors to train students during practice experiences. This is more difficult than it was a decade ago for several reasons. There are more pharmacy colleges and schools today and they are enrolling students who will all need to complete IPPEs and APPEs. Introductory pharmacy practice experiences are now a requirement for all colleges seeking accreditation. There is also a higher demand for residency programs. As more practice sites try to meet this need, it places additional pressure on preceptors to continually mentor more people, be it IPPE students, APPE students, or residents. However, pharmacy students are capable of providing meaningful clinical services for the practice sites and can generate financial savings, which have been well documented in the literature. Mersfelder and Bouthillier published a review of these studies dating back to the early 1990s. Most either enrolled few students or were conducted over a relatively short period of time, often just a few months. Some studies were limited in terms of experience type or practice sites and only tracked interventions made during inpatient experiences or in critical care environments at specific institutions. Other studies did not include a financial assessment and only looked at the number of interventions made by students and acceptance rates by the primary care providers. This report expands upon the existing literature and provides more evidence to support the value of pharmacy students during APPEs. It includes 4 years of student interventions over various practice settings and experience types and provides more detailed information about the clinical interventions made by students. The interventions were documented through a commercially available Web-based documentation program. The most common student interventions as well as the most economically valuable interventions are presented and discussed. The objective of this study was to quantify the impact of pharmacy students' clinical interventions in terms of number and cost savings throughout advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPEs) using a Web-based documentation program.