An Infographic Assignment to Translate Self-Care Therapeutics into Practical Application.

INNOVATION

An infographic assignment was developed and integrated into an advanced self-care therapeutics elective course in a School of Pharmacy to facilitate practical communication of dynamic and innovative approaches to patient care while supporting diversity in assessment.

DESCRIPTION

The 'Spotlight on Self-Care' assignment required pharmacy students to develop three infographic deliverables detailing comprehensive care for one minor ailment. The three deliverables were: 1) a magazine insert for healthcare professionals, 2) a patient-friendly handout, and 3) a pharmacists' companion practice tool. All deliverables were assessed by rubrics using consistent criteria, including: clinical content, logical presentation, research quality, visual elements and formatting. The five highest-scoring magazine inserts were offered publication in the Pharmacy Practice and Business Magazine after peer review.

CRITICAL APPRAISAL

The submitted infographics put clinical content from the course into action by leveraging recent trends in effective communication. As an assessment, the infographic assignment recognized a unique profile of skills in the students that was statistically different from the profile of skills that was evaluated by the multiple-choice examinations. The key issues to address include reducing grading time requirements and developing strategies to detect copyrighted materials. Future investigations into the nature of the skills gained by the students through the exercise, as well as their perceptions regarding the professional value of the exercise, are important for refining the administration of this assignment.