Palm Beach Atlantic University, West Palm Beach, FL, USA.
Ann Pharmacother. 2012 Sep;46(9):1250-5. doi: 10.1345/aph.1Q784. Epub 2012 Aug 14.
At the Gregory School of Pharmacy (GSOP), pharmacy students routinely participate in domestic and international medical mission trips. Participation can be for academic credit as part of final-year Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPEs) or as required community service hours. These mission experiences could potentially result in both professional and personal transformations for participating students.
To evaluate data collected from GSOP pharmacy students regarding their experiences on the medical mission field in 2011 and how that participation has impacted the students professionally and personally.
GSOP students participating in an international or domestic medical mission trip in the summer of 2011 were asked to voluntarily complete pre- and posttrip surveys.
Of the 68 final-year APPE students and student volunteers who participated in a summer 2011 GSOP medical mission trip, 36 (53%) completed pre- and posttrip surveys. The mission trips significantly impacted students' beliefs regarding better preparation to care for the medical needs of patients, identification of others' needs, understanding team dynamics, perceptions about the value of patient care, and comfort level with the provision of medical and pharmaceutical care in a foreign country. However, there were no statistically significant improvements in students' perceptions of their ability to care for the emotional needs of patients, the importance of team unity, and their level of respect for team members; their ability to lead or participate in future trips; and their belief that participating preceptors and faculty serve as effective role models of servant leaders.
Based on the findings from this exploratory study, participation in a domestic or international medical mission trip as a student volunteer or APPE student appears to have a positive impact on some of the beliefs and perceptions of GSOP students. By continuing to follow these particular students and similar cohorts of students in the future, further insight may be gained regarding the long-term impact of medical mission experiences during pharmacy school training.
在 Gregory 药学院（GSOP），药学专业的学生经常参加国内外的医疗志愿服务活动。这些活动既可以作为学生最后一年高级药学实践经验（APPEs）的学术学分，也可以作为社区服务要求的学时。这些志愿活动可能会使参与的学生在专业和个人方面都发生转变。
评估从 GSOP 药学专业学生那里收集到的关于他们在 2011 年医疗志愿服务活动中的经验的数据，以及这些参与如何对学生的专业和个人产生影响。
被要求参加 2011 年夏季国际或国内医疗志愿服务活动的 GSOP 学生被要求自愿填写活动前后的调查问卷。
在参加 2011 年夏季 GSOP 医疗志愿服务活动的 68 名最后一年 APPE 学生和学生志愿者中，有 36 名（53%）完成了活动前后的调查问卷。这些志愿服务活动显著影响了学生对更好地准备满足患者医疗需求、识别他人需求、理解团队动态、对患者护理价值的看法以及在国外提供医疗和药物护理的舒适度的信念。然而，学生对自己照顾患者情感需求的能力、团队团结的重要性以及对团队成员的尊重程度的看法，他们领导或参与未来旅行的能力，以及他们对参与导师和教师作为服务型领导者有效榜样的信念并没有统计学上的显著提高。
基于这项探索性研究的结果，作为学生志愿者或 APPE 学生参加国内或国际医疗志愿服务活动似乎对 GSOP 学生的一些信念和看法产生了积极影响。通过继续关注这些特定学生和未来类似的学生群体，我们可能会进一步了解医疗志愿服务经验在药学培训期间对学生的长期影响。
