PHRM4071 – QUM Research-Focused Project

Course Introduction

The PHRM4071 6-week QUM research-focused placement experience aims to provide students with an opportunity to engage in pharmacy research regarding a Quality Use of Medicine issue that aims to contribute to improving health outcomes relevant to the placement site. For many students, it will be their first experience conducting QUM research and students will require the guidance of their preceptors to identify a relevant QUM issue, formulate their key aims/objectives and design appropriate methodology to achieve the research aim(s).

The research project and objectives can focus on any activity that relates to the improvement of QUM at the placement site and can be qualitative or quantitative in nature. For example:

• If the placement site gives the opportunity to participate in activities which improve drug safety or efficacy – use safety or efficacy as central objectives;
• If the placement site concentrates on communication with patients – develop objectives related to communication with consumers;
• If the placement requires the student to observe the activities of professionals and consumers at that site – develop objectives which reflect and illustrate the nature and importance of these activities

Students have been prepared with a lecture that covers the course expectations, assessment requirements and a detailed description of the research process. The Introduction to Pharmacy Research lecture covers the following topics:

• Developing your research question
• Performing a literature review
• Writing research objectives
• Developing the research methodology
• Data analysis and interpretation of results

Students are required to submit an Ethics and Project Outline to the Course Coordinator, which describes the following key points (if relevant):

• Research aims/objectives
• Key steps involved in conducting the research project
• Who are the participants
• Inclusion/exclusion criteria
• Data collection points and template
• Survey questions (verbal or electronic)
• Data/statistical analysis
• Risks associated with the research and mitigation strategies
• Privacy and confidentiality considerations

Students must receive academic approval from their Course Coordinator before they can begin their research project.

Placement Timeline

Students will complete their placement in either Semester 1 or Semester 2 of Year 4 of the Program, commencing two weeks prior to Week 1 of the semester and concluding at the end of Week 4 of the semester.

Table 1 below shows the recommended timeline of activities across the 6-week placement, for both the QUM Research project and the Entrustable Professional Activities.

Student Preparation

Students are expected to undertake a minimum of TWO EPAs during their placement experience. Students completing their placements within a hospital or other clinical setting can choose from a range of clinical and non-clinical EPAs based on their individual learning goals and current experience. Students completing their placements at a non-clinical (i.e. non-patient facing) facility can undertake the non-clinical EPAs which focus on Data Collection and Management and Teamwork and Collaboration.

Students have been prepared for both clinical and non-clinical EPAs throughout the course of their degree, having multiple opportunities to demonstrate clinical skills and knowledge in classroom and OSCE settings, participation in group assignments and in the faculty collaborative practice curriculum. Students are expected to combine various elements of their own experience, skills and knowledge to achieve the performance criteria and elements of the EPAs they wish to undertake.

For details of the topics that students have studied in the previous year, please see:

PHRM3101 – Pharmacy Practice and Medicines Management 3A

PHRM3102 – Pharmacy Practice and Medicines Management 3B

Entrustable Professional Activities

Click on the links below to view the EPA templates

• Best possible medication history 
• Medication chart review
• Patient education
• Resolving a Medication Related Problem
• Assessment of Inhaler Technique and Counselling
• Oral Anticoagulant Education
• Teamwork and Collaboration
• Data Collection and Management

Please note that the Bachelor of Pharmacy (Hons) EPAs have been scaffolded to an appropriate level for the students and differ from the EPAs that are completed in other programs, including the internship programs. If you are familiar with other EPA formats, we ask that you follow the templates for this course as they have been designed to align with the students’ program of study.

Entrustment Level

As a general guide, we expect that most students will be assigned an entrustment level of 2 or 3. The level of entrustment assigned to the student will not directly impact their course grade and should be used as a guide for student feedback and development. It would be expected that entrustment levels for more complex EPAs may be lower as students work towards developing their clinical knowledge and skills.