Brandon Hope, Scarduzio Jennifer A, Fogleman Laurie, Stallworth Sara, Kebodeaux Clark, Romanelli Frank
University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy, United States of America.
University of Kentucky College of Communication and Information, United States of America.
Curr Pharm Teach Learn. 2025 Nov;17(11):102435. doi: 10.1016/j.cptl.2025.102435. Epub 2025 Jul 18.
Identify factors perceived by pharmacy educators to be associated with declining North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination (NAPLEX) first-time pass rates to highlight potential focused areas of further research or consideration.
Qualitative responses from a single open-ended question, "What other factors not addressed in this survey do you believe are influencing the decline in NAPLEX first-time pass rates?", were analyzed using thematic analysis. This question was part of a 43-item Qualtrics™ questionnaire developed to gather insight from pharmacy educators regarding the impact of various factors on the declining NAPLEX first-time pass rates. Due to the large number of responses, qualitative data was analyzed separately from quantitative data.
Two hundred and seventy-one qualitative responses were recorded. The analysis revealed five second-level, or higher-order categories, and sixteen first-level, descriptive codes which were used for analysis. The categories included external factors, student factors, faculty characteristics, pharmacy program challenges, and NAPLEX challenges. The first level codes included a variety of themes such as financial insecurity, increased student diversity, faculty accountability, and accreditation pressure.
Pharmacy educators perceive that many factors could be influencing declining first-time NAPLEX pass rates. Based on the data included in this manuscript, items to consider include providing additional financial support to aid student's ability to focus on their studies during pharmacy school, working to identify early flags that a student may need extra support to succeed, focusing on aligning what is taught in the classroom with what is being tested on the examination, and promotion of remediation strategies to ensure mastery of material.
确定药学教育工作者认为与北美药剂师执照考试（NAPLEX）首次通过率下降相关的因素，以突出进一步研究或考虑的潜在重点领域。
对一个开放式问题“你认为本次调查未涉及的其他哪些因素正在影响NAPLEX首次通过率的下降？”的定性回答，采用主题分析法进行分析。这个问题是一个包含43个项目的Qualtrics™问卷的一部分，该问卷旨在收集药学教育工作者对各种因素对NAPLEX首次通过率下降影响的见解。由于回复数量众多，定性数据与定量数据分开分析。
记录了271条定性回复。分析揭示了五个二级或更高级别的类别，以及用于分析的16个一级描述性代码。这些类别包括外部因素、学生因素、教师特征、药学项目挑战和NAPLEX挑战。一级代码包括各种主题，如经济不安全、学生多样性增加、教师问责制和认证压力。
药学教育工作者认为许多因素可能影响NAPLEX首次通过率的下降。根据本手稿中包含的数据，需要考虑的事项包括提供额外的经济支持，以帮助学生在药学院学习期间专注于学业；努力识别学生可能需要额外支持才能成功的早期信号；注重使课堂教学内容与考试内容保持一致；推广补救策略以确保掌握所学材料。
