TY - JOUR
T1 - Implementation of the WHO-6-step method in the medical curriculum to improve pharmacology knowledge and pharmacotherapy skills
AU - Keijsers, Carolina J P W
AU - Segers, Wieke S.
AU - De Wildt, Dick J.
AU - Brouwers, Jacobus R B J
AU - Keijsers, Loes
AU - Jansen, Paul A F
PY - 2015/6/1
Y1 - 2015/6/1
N2 - Aim The only validated tool for pharmacotherapy education for medical students is the 6-step method of the World Health Organization. It has proven effective in experimental studies with short term interventions. The generalizability of this effect after implementation in a contextual-rich medical curriculum was investigated. Methods The pharmacology knowledge and pharmacotherapy skills of cohorts of students, from years before, during and after implementation of a WHO-6-step-based integrated learning programme were tested using a standardized assessment containing 50 items covering knowledge of basic (n = 25) and clinical (n = 24) pharmacology, and pharmacotherapy skills (n = 1 open question). All scores are expressed as a percentage of the maximum score possible per (sub)domain. Results In total, 1652 students were included between September 2010 and July 2014 (participation rate 89%). The WHO-6-step-based learning programme improved students' knowledge of basic pharmacology (mean score ± SD, 60.6 ± 10.5% vs. 63.4 ± 10.9%, P <0.01) and clinical or applied pharmacology (63.7 ± 10.4% vs. 67.4 ± 10.3%, P <0.01), and improved their pharmacotherapy skills (68.8 ± 26.1% vs. 74.6% ± 22.9%, P 0.02). Moreover, satisfaction with education increased (5.7 ± 1.3 vs. 6.3 ± 1.0 on a 10-point scale, P <0.01) and as did students' confidence in daily practice (from -0.81 ± 0.72 to -0.50 ± 0.79 on a -2 to +2 scale, P <0.01). Conclusions The WHO-6-step method was successfully implemented in a medical curriculum. In this observational study, the integrated learning programme had positive effects on students' knowledge of basic and applied pharmacology, improved their pharmacotherapy skills, and increased satisfaction with education and self-confidence in prescribing. Whether this training method leads to better patient care remains to be established.
AB - Aim The only validated tool for pharmacotherapy education for medical students is the 6-step method of the World Health Organization. It has proven effective in experimental studies with short term interventions. The generalizability of this effect after implementation in a contextual-rich medical curriculum was investigated. Methods The pharmacology knowledge and pharmacotherapy skills of cohorts of students, from years before, during and after implementation of a WHO-6-step-based integrated learning programme were tested using a standardized assessment containing 50 items covering knowledge of basic (n = 25) and clinical (n = 24) pharmacology, and pharmacotherapy skills (n = 1 open question). All scores are expressed as a percentage of the maximum score possible per (sub)domain. Results In total, 1652 students were included between September 2010 and July 2014 (participation rate 89%). The WHO-6-step-based learning programme improved students' knowledge of basic pharmacology (mean score ± SD, 60.6 ± 10.5% vs. 63.4 ± 10.9%, P <0.01) and clinical or applied pharmacology (63.7 ± 10.4% vs. 67.4 ± 10.3%, P <0.01), and improved their pharmacotherapy skills (68.8 ± 26.1% vs. 74.6% ± 22.9%, P 0.02). Moreover, satisfaction with education increased (5.7 ± 1.3 vs. 6.3 ± 1.0 on a 10-point scale, P <0.01) and as did students' confidence in daily practice (from -0.81 ± 0.72 to -0.50 ± 0.79 on a -2 to +2 scale, P <0.01). Conclusions The WHO-6-step method was successfully implemented in a medical curriculum. In this observational study, the integrated learning programme had positive effects on students' knowledge of basic and applied pharmacology, improved their pharmacotherapy skills, and increased satisfaction with education and self-confidence in prescribing. Whether this training method leads to better patient care remains to be established.
KW - implementation
KW - medical education
KW - pharmacology
KW - pharmacotherapy
KW - WHO-6-step
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84930010871&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/bcp.12575
DO - 10.1111/bcp.12575
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84930010871
SN - 0306-5251
VL - 79
SP - 896
EP - 906
JO - British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology
JF - British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology
IS - 6
ER -