Evaluation of a clinical skills assessment tool for young pharmacists in Japan

Abstract

The roles and responsibilities of pharmacists have shifted from dispensing to medical therapy management, but there is no standardized postgraduate educational program for trainee pharmacists in Japan. This exploratory study aimed to investigate the applicability of case-based discussion (CbD) in the evaluation of pharmacists-in-training based on changes in CbD scores during the pharmacy residency period. The five CbD items evaluated were pharmaceutical needs assessment, treatment recommendations, follow-up/monitoring, professionalism, and overall clinical judgment. Pharmacy residents engaged in CbD with their preceptor at the end of each ward training session with a total of four a year. A total of 78 pharmacy residents and five board-certified pharmacists (BCPs) as a control were included in the study. The CbD scores for all five items increased with ward experience, with statistically significant changes (P < 0.05) in the scores for four of the items (excluding treatment recommendations). BCPs scored six on all items. Thus, CbD scores at the end of the training period reflected an improvement in the clinical competency of pharmacy residents in Japan. Further studies at different institutions are needed to confirm the reliability and validity of CbD.