New approach to teaching basic science courses: Biochemistry and molecular biology in the block system of curricular design

American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education,  Spring 1998  by Rosenberg, Harry,  Coffman, Renee,  Jafari, Mahtab Fesharaki,  Prabhu, Sunil,  Tallian, Kimberly

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New Approach to Teaching Basic Science Courses: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in the Block System of Curricular Design

The overarching goal for curricular content in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology was to enable students apply basic science material to the clinical setting. The traditional curricular delivery system was modified to allow students to immerse themselves in one topic, to enable students to achieve a 90 percent competency level, to encourage peer teaching, and to enhance communication skills. Students received 216 contact hours in two blocks. Educational activities included lecture, case-based learning, presentations, and role-playing. All activities sought to apply basic scientific principles to clinically relevant situations. Novel methods of curricular delivery were designed to enhance student achievement. Student evaluations revealed the ability to apply basic science principles to clinical situations. They demonstrated a deeper understanding of the subject matter as evidenced by the achievement of 90 percent competency. Additionally, they showed improvement in social and academic skills. Curricular redesign can contribute to achieving desired educational outcomes. Nontraditional teaching methods can foster greater depth of knowledge and enhance the integration of basic and clinical sciences.

INTRODUCTION

As a new school of pharmacy, the Western University College of Pharmacy is exploring many innovative teaching methods, some of which are presented in this report. The teaching innovations described here include various classroom methods that are supported by college-wide innovations in curricular design and delivery. It is this novel approach to the curriculum that makes the classroom teaching methods possible; therefore, an orientation to the Western University system is addressed first.

CURRICULUM DESIGN

The curriculum is organized into the following broad-based components: (i) Core Academic Program; (ii) Pharmacist Development Program; (iii) Elective Program; and (iv) Patient-Based Program

Core Academic Program

This is the central educational component of the first three years of the PharmD curriculum. It represents an integrated approach to pharmaceutical education taught by teams of clinical and basic science faculty, and emphasizes fundamental biomedical and pharmaceutical concepts as well as principles of pathophysiology and pharmacotherapy.

The Core Academic Program consists of five sections representing the following major content areas: (I) fundamentals of therapeutic agents; (ii) biochemistry and molecular biology; (iii) metabolism and nutrition; (iv) biological basis of disease; (v) management of homeostasis.

Based on the organ system approach, each Management of Homeostasis block seeks to amalgamate the following ten concepts:

1. History: Historical significance and perspectives, classic articles, studies, etc.;

2. Biomedical science: Review of basic and pharmaceutical science concepts relevant to the organ system;

3. Physical Assessment: Review of key aspects of assessment parameters; Clinical laboratory and diagnostic tests and procedures;

4. Pharmacology;

5. Pathophysiology;

6. Therapeutics: Prescription and nonprescription drugs, review of pharmaceutics and pharmacokinetics;

7. Clinical Services Management: Outcome, drug use evaluations (DUE), disease management, protocols, pharmacoeconomics;

8. The Competent Practitioner: Service, education, and research come together to explain how future graduates may become competent in a specialty area in this organ system. Practitioners from various specialty areas are invited to give an overview of contemporary practice and discuss how to work with the health care team.

9. Patient Care Parameters: Education, compliance, wellness, public health, quality of life issues, communications.

10. The Future: New research, drug protocols are presented and discussed. Students learn to understand how the management of this organ system is changing, and how they can track and respond to changes occurring in the environment.

Pharmacist Development Program

This is a longitudinal, problem-based learning component of the PharmD curriculum that is designed to introduce students to the complex nature of the emerging health care system. This component is intended to assist students in development abilities that will be critical in enabling the health care practitioners to respond both to patients and their environments in the future. Students focus on the following subject areas:

Health Care Economics and Finance

Health Care Systems/Managed Care

Total Quality Management

Outcomes Measurement

Biostatistics

Epidemiology and Population Health

Ethics and Jurisprudence

Clinical Policy Analysis

Wellness, Health Promotion, and Disease Prevention

Medical and Drug Literature Evaluation/Informatics

Interpersonal Skills and Concepts of Human Behavior

Elective Program (Area of Concentration)

This component allows students the opportunity to pursue in-depth areas of concentrated study.