Clinical pharmacy has developed into a distinct discipline in the UK, compared with many parts of the world where hospital pharmacists are seen as mainly drug suppliers and dispensers. This module builds on knowledge and skills obtained in Modules 1 and 3. It is closely aligned with Module 3 (Clinical Practice at Placement Site) which enables students put into practice the knowledge and skills acquired in the lecture/workshop sessions.

The module is held in Term 2 and covers further clinical pharmacy topics and practice and policy skills. The clinical pharmacy topics include pharmacotherapy associated with World Health Organisation (WHO) and National Health Service (NHS) priorities of mental health disorders, liver and kidney diseases, oncology, paediatrics and care of the elderly. Practice and policy topics include learning and teaching, pharmacoepidemiology, medication errors and adherence

The module is assessed by a therapeutic review task and a written examination.

The therapeutic review task is an evaluation of evidence to support the pharmaceutical management of a particular condition in a particular patient or patient population. The therapeutic review is meant to assess how a student critically evaluates the evidence for the drug therapy of a patient or patient population

Students are required to apply the principles of evidence-based medicine to determine the place in therapy of a selected medicine for the care of an individual patient or a group of patients. This requires critical evaluation of available evidence in relation to an individual patient or patient group. Students are required to make recommendations based on the critical evaluation on the selected medicine’s place in therapy for the patient or patient group.

Each student will submit ONE Therapeutic Review in Term 2. This assignment should be a maximum of 2000 words in length (excluding references, tables, and appendices). It can be based on a patient from the patient profiles. It would be advisable to review choice of topic with your tutor before completing this assignment. Further details will be discussed during the Term 2 overview session

MODULE OBJECTIVES:

At the end of the module, students should be able to:

Identify pharmaceutical care problems and select optimal pharmacotherapy for paediatrics and elderly patients as well as patients with renal, liver, pain and mental health disorders taking into account individual patient demographics.
 Accurately interpret medical notes, patient histories and clinical monitoring parameters.
 Describe any particular issues around drug administration where appropriate.
 Identify and critically appraise the relevant evidence base pertaining to pharmaceutical care of a named patient or a patient group.
 Formulate recommendations based on the findings of a critical appraisal of the evidence.
 Justify recommendations made to manage a patient’s drug related problems, and where appropriate, form an opinion on alternative treatment options.
 Explain factors that help or hinder adherence and how to support medication adherence.
 Describe different types of iatrogenic injury.
 Identify causes of errors and ways of reducing errors in clinical practice.
 Explain the basis of pharmacoepidemiology and the meaning of rates and proportions in epidemiology
 Communicate effectively and professionally with other health care practitioners and patients.