Discovering interprofessional competencies within a clinical pharmacology curriculum

Background: Medication-related problems are a serious concern for the healthcare system, and many could be prevented with effective communication and teamwork including patients as team members. Purpose: In an attempt to strengthen students’ medication management skills, we implemented a clinical pharmacology curriculum at one medical school's regional campus and had the opportunity to test the curriculum in two different contexts. Method: The course for third year medical students was taught twice: once interprofessionally with nurse practitioner, undergraduate medicine, and pharmacy learners, and once with medical students only. Differences between the two medical student cohorts were assessed both quantitatively and qualitatively. Discussion: The clinical pharmacology curriculum significantly increased students’ self-reported confidence with medication-related tasks compared to baseline for both cohorts of learners. Compared to the uniprofessional group, the interprofessional cohort of learners also gained a new appreciation for the roles and unique contributions other professions add to patient care. Conclusion: Adding clinical pharmacology concepts to the curriculum improved students’ comfort with performing medication-related tasks, and the addition of interprofessional partners led to a new awareness and respect for the roles of other professions.