PGC5301 · Pharmacist prescribing skills 1

Overview

This unit will equip you with the knowledge and skills to make safe person-centred and evidence-informed prescribing decisions as a pharmacist. You will learn about and apply the principles of quality use of medicines, person-centred care, shared decision making, cultural competency, interprofessional collaborative care, evidence based practice and clinical governance to manage simulated prescribing cases. You will also apply principles of legal and ethical practice to make safe prescribing decisions within a pharmacists’ professional scope of practice. Throughout this unit, you will learn about the signs, symptoms, diagnostic features and management options relevant to acute primary care ear, nose and throat conditions, gastrointestinal conditions and chronic respiratory conditions. Using the context of these acute and chronic primary care conditions, you will apply knowledge and skills relevant to the four step prescribing process of information gathering, clinical decision-making, communicating and documenting treatment plans and monitoring treatment responses. In the context of these conditions, this unit will also teach you how to conduct comprehensive, culturally safe patient assessments to develop a working diagnosis and make prescribing decisions that promote person-centred care. To support this, you will develop basic physical examination skills (including techniques such as otoscopic examination and chest auscultation) relevant to the diagnosis and management of acute and chronic primary care conditions. Through a series of case-based learning and simulation exercises you will start developing your prescribing competency.

Offerings

Assessment

The Handbook lists an examination for this unit.

You will be assessed using the Monash Competency Grading Schema for this unit. This unit contains one or more competency hurdle assessment tasks that you must successfully complete to be able to pass the unit. If you fail to meet the hurdle requirement, you will receive a fail grade for the unit regardless of the total marks you achieve.

Assessment details may change. Please refer to the assessment information in Moodle closer to the start of the teaching period.

Requisites

The Handbook lists no prerequisite, corequisite or prohibition for this unit.

Learning outcomes

1. Demonstrate cultural competency by critically reflecting on personal and workplace practices, identifying cultural biases, and proposing evidence-based strategies to improve cultural safety in healthcare delivery
2. Demonstrate the principles of quality use of medicines, clinical reasoning, person-centred care and evidence-based medicine within the context of the prescribing process
3. In the context of common primary care acute and chronic conditions, apply the steps of the prescribing process to create person-centred and evidence informed treatment decisions: i) Conduct comprehensive, culturally safe patient assessments, including basic physical examination techniques to develop a working diagnosis (where needed) and make prescribing decisions that promote person-centred care. ii) Evaluate and apply evidence-based management options tailored to person-specific factors, ensuring alignment with clinical guidelines and therapeutic goals. iii) Formulate, document, and communicate safe, legal, effective and ethical treatment plans that comply with legislative requirements and codes and guidelines, and support person-centred care. iv) Monitor and evaluate treatment outcomes, including the identification and management of adverse outcomes
4. Prepare accurate prescriptions and identify potential sources of prescribing errors, implementing strategies to minimise risks, enhance patient safety and comply with legal requirements.
5. Engage patients in shared decision-making, respecting their needs, preferences, and cultural considerations to foster active participation in their treatment plans
6. Collaborate with healthcare professionals to ensure coordinated, informed, and effective prescribing practices within personal scope of practice. This includes identifying when referral to another healthcare professional is required
7. Describe the signs, symptoms, diagnostic features and management options relevant to acute primary care ear, nose and throat conditions, gastrointestinal conditions and chronic respiratory conditions
8. Perform and accurately document key diagnostic and physical examination procedures, including but not limited to otoscopic examination, chest examination, abdominal examination, and blood pressure measurement - demonstrating correct technique, and interpretation of findings to inform patient management.
9. Define professional scope of practice in the context of pharmacist prescribing and develop professional development (CPD) plans to ensure safe, competent, and sustained prescribing practice.

Workload

Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled online learning activities and independent study. The unit requires on average 10-12 hours of learning activities per week, including teacher directed learning, independent study and reading time, participation in online workshops, research and preparation for assignments. Within the 144 hours total for this unit, you are required to commit to attend: • Four 2-hour online workshops • A five-day face to face series of practical workshops and assessments.

Student experience, not official rules. Nothing here changes what the Handbook says.