Pharmacy student attitudes toward an interprofessional patient safety course: An exploratory mixed methods study

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to explore attitudes of pharmacy students toward an elective, interprofessional patient safety course. Methods: This study used an exploratory mixed methods design. Quantitative data were collected from course evaluations, case study performance, and final examination performance. Qualitative data were collected through interviews with seven first-year pharmacy students. Qualitative themes were triangulated with descriptive results from quantitative analysis of data using a convergence model. Results: Students averaged an 88% on the final examination and, through their case studies, demonstrated the ability to apply this content knowledge to practical situations. Data from the course evaluation showed that students placed a high value on receiving patient safety education, and felt that the course should continue to be offered. Five major qualitative themes emerged from student interviews: putting a face on patient safety, reframing my role as a gatekeeper of patient safety, realizing it is just part of the job, everyone in health care needs to be trained about safe systems, and interprofessional learning is needed for safety to work. Comparison of quantitative and qualitative data confirmed the themes that emerged. Conclusions: Students found great value in patient safety education. The professional literature has shown that there is a general lack of patient safety education in Doctor of Pharmacy training. Our results demonstrate that early introduction of this type of education has the potential to transform the values-based framework that pharmacists-in-training are forming to include an explicit context of patient safety.