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To analyze the impact of a pharmacy student delivered presentation on prospective rural high school students' interest toward the pharmacy profession and knowledge regarding a career in pharmacy. Presentations about applying to pharmacy school, the Doctor of Pharmacy degree, and pharmacist careers were given at ten high schools across North Dakota and Minnesota by third year pharmacy students attending North Dakota State University. Each pharmacy student presenter received training to ensure that all high school students received clear and consistent information. A pre-post survey was used to understand the impact of the presentation on high school student interest and knowledge regarding a career in pharmacy. Data was analyzed using a chi-square test and McNemar's test. Five hundred and eight students consented to the study and completed the pre-post surveys. Of these students, the largest group was high school juniors (number (n) = 239, 47%), followed by sophomores (n = 161, 32%), seniors (n = 104, 20%) and freshmen (n = 3, 1%). The majority of students attended school in North Dakota (n = 469, 92%). Similarly, most students planned to attend a four-year college (n = 451, 89%) and were interested in a medical/healthcare related career (n = 310, 61%). All interest and knowledge questions showed a statistically significant increase in score pre-post. Presentations delivered by pharmacy students to prospective rural high school students improved overall interest and knowledge regarding pharmacy school and the profession. Presentations are a useful tool for pharmacy programs to help promote their school and the profession of pharmacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) requires schools to provide anti-doping education to student athletes. The purpose of this project was to assess the effectiveness of student pharmacist-led education on NCAA student athletes' knowledge of banned supplements and nutritional/dietary supplements. Student athletes at one Midwest public university were provided a 20-min educational presentation on banned substances and nutritional and dietary supplements delivered by two student pharmacists. Student athletes were invited to complete a knowledge assessment at baseline and after the presentation. The assessment consisted of two demographic questions and 13 knowledge questions. Two hundred thirty-three student athletes provided matched pre- and post-intervention data for analysis. There was an increase in the mean knowledge scores (13 points maximum); 9.8 (75%) before and 11.1 (85%) after the intervention. Student athletes gained more knowledge in the topic areas of stimulant medications and identification of credible drug sources. They gained less knowledge in the topic area of anabolic steroid use. Student pharmacist-led education resulted in statistically significant increases in student athlete knowledge of banned substances and nutritional/dietary supplements. The educational presentation is adaptable and easily transferable to other universities. Schools of pharmacy should consider implementing student pharmacist-led education to student athletes to meet NCAA education requirements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction Faculty from North Dakota State University School of Pharmacy developed a team‐based, live game to create a synergy between the educational benefit of hands‐on activities and gaming. The diabetes escape room was developed and used to reinforce and improve pharmacy students' knowledge and skills in diabetes management. Objective An iterative, design‐based research process was used to evaluate the impact of a diabetes escape room on students' diabetes knowledge gain and perceptions. Methods: Faculty initiated an action research methodology to refine the design of a diabetes escape room using a design‐based research macrocycle with two iterations involving two cohorts of students. Pre‐ and postknowledge assessments as well as survey questions that assessed the perceived value of the activity on student learning were administered to students. The learning and research trajectories were modified in the second iteration to allow for design improvement and further insight into learning benefits. Following the second iteration, student teams were interviewed on their perceptions of the diabetes escape room and its effect on learning. These interviews were qualitatively analyzed. Results: Using paired and independent sample t‐tests, the postknowledge assessment scores were statistically and significantly higher than the preknowledge assessment scores for both iterations and students perceived the activity to be valuable for their learning. Team interviews identified two major themes in students' perception of the escape room including teamwork building and knowledge and skill building. Conclusion: When instructional design principles are carefully implemented in the design of a serious game, students strengthen and enhance their prior knowledge of a subject by building both cognitive and practical skills. Design‐based research processes help refine and further investigate educational interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pharmacy education standards highlight the importance of effective communication skills and the use of technology to provide patient care. As technology evolves, pharmacists have opportunities to communicate in different and broader ways. Objective: The objectives of this study were 3-fold: to evaluate student ability to counsel via telepharmacy, to determine if there is a difference in students' abilities to counsel face-to-face or via telepharmacy, and to determine students' perceptions regarding patient consultation via telepharmacy. Methods: Professional pharmacy students completed a pharmaceutical care laboratory activity focused on communication via telepharmacy. Comparisons were made between students' ability to provide patient consultation via telepharmacy and face-to-face utilizing a faculty-developed rubric. Students also completed a questionnaire on their perception of utilizing telepharmacy technology to provide patient consultation. Results: Eighty-two second-year professional pharmacy students participated in the study. Results showed students are able to successfully provide patient consultation via telepharmacy without prior practice; however, there was a statistically significant difference between students' ability to counsel face-to-face and via telepharmacy ( P < .001). Overall, students were more successful at providing face-to-face consultation than via telepharmacy, and students who were first assessed on their ability to counsel face-to-face perceived a greater difference between telepharmacy and face-to-face consultation ( P < .05). Conclusion: Student-perceived differences between the 2 means of consultation and demonstrated a difference in their ability to counsel via telepharmacy and face-to-face. It appears that, when evaluating the need to teach professional pharmacy students how to provide patient consultation via telepharmacy, additional exposure to telepharmacy technology could be beneficial by enhancing student comfort and proficiency., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting Interests: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article., (© The Author(s) 2015.)