Western New England University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, 1215 Wilbraham Road, Springfield, MA 01119, United States.
Bay Path University, 588 Longmeadow Street, Longmeadow, MA 01106, United States.
Curr Pharm Teach Learn. 2021 Sep;13(9):1236-1243. doi: 10.1016/j.cptl.2021.06.043. Epub 2021 Jun 22.
The role of pharmacists in pharmacogenomics (PGx) use clinically is expanding, leading to increased pharmacy education requirements. Current reports indicate that PGx is primarily taught through didactic courses, indicating a need for applied coursework in pharmacy curricula, including laboratory exercises and clinical experiences. Such courses are instrumental in helping students connect the science of PGx to patient care.
An advanced PGx independent study and a similar advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) were developed. These courses included personal genetic testing, raw genetic sequence data analysis, and wet-laboratory genetic testing. The APPE included sessions with clinical pharmacists who use PGx and a genetic counselor, as well as a visit to a genetic reference laboratory. A pre-/post-examination and survey were used to measure the courses' effectiveness and student perceptions of their abilities, PGx, and course components. For this pilot study one student per course was evaluated.
Each student completed all components of the courses successfully, supporting the feasibility of their implementation. Examination scores increased for both students with improvement in knowledge from basic genetics to clinical application. Both students also had a more positive perception of PGx after the courses and valued the various course components.
Through this unique course format, pharmacy students developed expertise in understanding and implementing PGx which allowed them to gain skills that go beyond an introductory course. Our experience may provide guidance to other pharmacy programs in adding more applied PGx education to their curricula.
药师在临床中应用药物基因组学（PGx）的角色正在不断扩大，这导致对药学教育的要求也在提高。目前的报告表明，PGx 主要通过理论课程教授，这表明需要在药学课程中增加应用课程，包括实验室练习和临床经验。这些课程有助于学生将 PGx 的科学知识与患者护理联系起来。
开发了一门高级 PGx 独立学习课程和一门类似的高级药学实践经验（APPE）课程。这些课程包括个人基因检测、原始基因序列数据分析和湿实验室基因检测。APPE 包括与使用 PGx 的临床药师以及遗传咨询师的会议，以及参观遗传参考实验室。使用预/后考试和调查来衡量课程的效果以及学生对其能力、PGx 和课程内容的看法。在这项试点研究中，对每门课程的一名学生进行了评估。
每个学生都成功完成了课程的所有部分，这支持了其实施的可行性。两名学生的考试成绩都有所提高，他们的基础知识从遗传学提高到了临床应用。在课程结束后，两名学生对 PGx 的看法也更加积极，并且重视各种课程内容。
通过这种独特的课程模式，药学专业的学生在理解和实施 PGx 方面发展了专业知识，使他们获得了超越入门课程的技能。我们的经验可能为其他药学课程在其课程中增加更多应用 PGx 教育提供指导。
