Evaluation of pediatric pharmacotherapy education in a college of pharmacy

IntroductionThere is limited information regarding pediatric pharmacy education in the US. The 2005 American College of Clinical Pharmacy opinion document calls for enhanced pediatric topics in pharmacy curricula. This paper describes a pediatric topic–specific curricular mapping process and the creation and evaluation of a pediatric elective course.MethodsThe curricular mapping process was used to identify the topics covered, the number of hours for each topic, and teaching methods. A pediatric elective course was created to introduce some topics and reinforce others. Evaluation of the course consisted of a comparison of examination grades on a pre- and post-test with a control group.ResultsThe curricular mapping process revealed 58 hours (21 clinical and 37 basic science) dedicated to pediatrics in the required curriculum. The study design enrolled 19 students in the elective group and 16 students in the control group. There was a statistically significant increase in examination scores between the elective group (mean 30.3) and the control group (mean 17.0) (p < 0.001).ConclusionThis paper describes a curricular mapping process to identify pediatric topics covered in a college of pharmacy. Based on the topics identified, investigation into the instructional design methods allowed the pediatric faculty member to assess the depth of material covered. An elective course was created to enhance the pediatric curriculum. Students enrolled in the pediatric elective showed enhanced knowledge of pediatric topics over their peers. This study is the first to describe a pediatric-specific curricular mapping process and evaluation of an elective course.