| Credits | 3 credits | |
| Coordinator/Primary Instructor | Dr. Bratberg | |
| Catalog Description | Advanced topics in infectious diseases and pulmonary pharmacotherapy through literature review, data interpretation, and case scenarios. Content will be delivered through the perspective of clinical pharmacists. (Lec. 3) Pre: 413, second or third year Doctor of Pharmacy student in good standing; or permission of the instructor. Not for graduate credit. | |
| Estimated Enrollment | 40 |
Detailed Course Description
The theme of this course is the identification, prevention, and control of infectious and pulmonary diseases. The focus of this course is the prevention of public health consequences of infectious diseases. While the infectious diseases/pulmonary core courses focused on how organisms cause disease, the mechanisms of drugs, and the how to choose appropriate therapy, this course broadens this approach from the level of the patient to the population level in both local and global scales. Critical AND creative thinking is desired, if not required, in addition to excellent oral and written communication skills, for success in this intense yet enjoyable, productive, and rewarding semester.
Attendance (104 points, 4 points/class)
To obtain the greatest value from this course, students must participate in all discussions and lectures in a timely fashion.
Readiness Assessments [quizzes] (160 points, 8 weeks X 20 points/quiz)
Best of ten quizzes in multiple choice format, taken with clickers on Tuesdays. Quiz question material taken from content posted on Sakai, primarily review articles of the week’s subject matter. Ten points per individual quiz, ten points for the group quiz.
Public Health Public Service Announcement (PSA) Project (300 points)
The goal of this project is to create a 30 second public service announcement to be submitted to a PSA contest (i.e. Visualizations at URI). Film students from URI will be assigned to each randomly selected groups of 4 pharmacy students to help with the technical and creative tenets of this project.
Public Health Policy Development (50/50/50=150 points; oral, written, use of clicker)
Student groups will write and present a critique of their assigned article, following standard journal club format on Thursdays. The presenting group will use the student response systems (clickers) to engage the class in their critique, and also in a short, evidence-based proposal for advancing the role of pharmacists in that particular public health topic.
Weekly Blog/Wiki on Public Health (120 points – 12 X 10 weeks)
Each group member will post important facts, links, photos, videos, etc. to a public wiki, blog, or website established by the group to highlight the a particular public health consequence of infectious diseases, and what pharmacists are doing or should be doing for it. This online presence is an extension of the theme of the PSA, and the audience should be identical. If a group has 4 members, each member will be required to post three times over the semester.
Peer Reviews (2 X 20 points=40 points)
Students must complete a midpoint and a final peer review honestly and completed to earn all 40 points. The average grades on these reviews may, in unusual circumstances, add or subtract points from a students’ total grade.
Final Exam (120 points)
The final exam, administered during the final examination week, will consist of questions based on the review articles, and be similar to the quiz questions discussion. The final will be taken individually only.
Learning Objectives
- Understand and expand the role of the pharmacist in the practical provision of pharmaceutical care to both patients and populations in local and global settings.
- Collaboratively create, storyboard, film, edit, finalize, and submit a public service announcement (PSA) to a national contest that highlights the public health and/or innovative role of the pharmacist.
- Discuss the PSA theme online in a blog or wiki designed to increase awareness of the issue and further highlight the pharmacist to the general public and/or a specific audience.
- Solidify skills of writing student response system questions and using them to stimulate audience interaction and discussion.
- Use cases and literature to illustrate and discuss controversial issues of both local and global public health importance.
- Become familiar with preventative and preparative strategies for public health, and present these strategies as a coherent policy or policies in oral and/or written forms.