Department of Pharmaceutical & Administrative Sciences, College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Western New England University, 1215 Wilbraham Rd., Springfield, MA 01119-2684, United States.
College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Western New England University, 1215 Wilbraham Rd., Springfield, MA 01119-2684, United States.
Curr Pharm Teach Learn. 2023 Oct;15(10):854-860. doi: 10.1016/j.cptl.2023.07.024. Epub 2023 Aug 4.
We have evaluated two approaches of monitoring schools and colleges of pharmacy based on North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination (NAPLEX) passage rates. Historically, the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) has cited programs for passage rate ≥2 SD below the national average. Since the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP) no longer reports scores, this procedure is being reconsidered. Our supposition is that the failure rate of ≥2 SD below the average should be retained, but now be based on the national average passage rate rather than score. Yet, we further suggest this is not sufficient due to major variations in class size.
We suggest the establishment of a "maximum acceptable failure count," likely in the range of 20 to 25 failing graduates per class. Analyses of data from 2017 to 2019 indicate that this approach would lead to monitoring approximately 15% of existing programs that graduate approximately 40% of individuals failing NAPLEX vs. monitoring only 5% of programs that graduate approximately 9% of individuals failing NAPLEX.
The historical method of monitoring pharmacy programs with NAPLEX passage rates ≥2 SD below the national average is not sufficient, primarily due large variations in class size. Since accreditation standards are currently being revised ("Standards 2025"), this would be an ideal time to update methods for selecting programs that warrant monitoring based on inadequate NAPLEX passage rates. We suggest the concept of "maximum acceptable failure count" should be considered when identifying programs to be cited.
我们评估了基于北美药剂师执照考试（NAPLEX）通过率的两种监测药学院校的方法。历史上，药学教育认证委员会（ACPE）曾引用通过率低于全国平均水平 2 个标准差的项目。由于国家药剂师协会（NABP）不再报告分数，因此正在重新考虑该程序。我们的假设是，通过率低于平均值 2 个标准差的失败率应该保留，但现在应该基于全国平均通过率而不是分数。然而，我们进一步认为，由于班级规模的巨大差异，这还不够。
我们建议建立一个“最大可接受的失败计数”，可能在 20 到 25 个失败的毕业生范围内。对 2017 年至 2019 年数据的分析表明，这种方法将监测大约 15%的现有项目，这些项目的毕业生中有大约 40%的人未能通过 NAPLEX，而不是仅监测大约 9%的毕业生中有 5%的人未能通过 NAPLEX 的项目。
使用 NAPLEX 通过率低于全国平均水平 2 个标准差的历史方法来监测药学项目是不够的，主要是由于班级规模的巨大差异。由于认证标准目前正在修订（“标准 2025”），这将是更新选择需要监测的项目的方法的理想时机，这些项目的 NAPLEX 通过率不足。我们建议，在确定需要引用的项目时，应考虑“最大可接受的失败计数”的概念。
