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Pharmacy Practice Survey Outcomes Align with Future Vision
Following extensive analysis and review of the pharmacy practice survey results, NABP has found that the overall view of pharmacists’ roles in pharmacy practice appears to be shifting. The survey, which was conducted during the second quarter 2009 to ensure that the North American Pharmacist Licensure Examination® (NAPLEX®) remains consistent with the current practice responsibilities of pharmacists, garnered a homogeneous set of responses from a diverse group of participants. When compared to the results of the survey conducted in 2003, participants in 2009 placed more emphasis on patient-centered care and therapeutic outcomes and less on dispensing. As a result, there was slight shift in weight of the NAPLEX Blueprint content areas. The proportion of items represented in the NAPLEX increased in Area 1, which covers pharmacotherapy and therapeutic outcomes. In addition, Area 1 was updated to include pharmacoeconomic factors as they relate to the identification and selection of pharmacotherapeutic agents, as well as the evaluation and management of drug regimens to enhance safe, effective, and economic patient outcomes. As a result of this increase in weight for Area 1, the proportion of items decreased in Area 2, which focuses on preparation and dispensing of medications, and remained the same in Area 3, which covers patient counseling and the promotion of public health.
This shift in the Blueprint and overall philosophy of pharmacy practice may likely be related to the change in pharmacists’ education and training as more pharmacists are entering into practice with a doctor of pharmacy degree. Additionally, as pharmacy practice advances with medication therapy management, collaborative practice, and administration of immunizations, pharmacists’ roles are evolving, placing a stronger focus on direct patient care.
These outcomes continue to support the evolving practice of pharmacy in addition to realizing the Joint Commission of Pharmacy Practitioners (JCPP) Future Vision of Pharmacy Practice. During the 106th Annual Meeting in Anaheim, CA, Gary A. Schnabel, RN, RPh, 2010-2011 NABP Executive Committee chairperson, expressed the upcoming challenges facing the practice of pharmacy as it shifts, “redefining the roles of both pharmacists and pharmacy technicians and helping to create a pharmacy practice environment in which pharmacists are enabled to provide the patient care services highlighted in the [JCPP] 2015 Vision.” Emphasizing patient care outcomes in the testing of entry-level practitioners is just one of many steps NABP plans to take to assist in implementation of this vision.
Survey Background
Pharmacists from all practice areas were represented in the 2009 pharmacy practice survey with 43% in community pharmacy practice settings, 41% in hospital practice settings, 9% in academia, and the remaining 7% in other various areas of practice. Of those who responded, 34% reported earning a doctor of pharmacy degree, 48% reported earning a bachelor of science degree in pharmacy, 16% reported earning both a bachelor of science degree and a doctor of pharmacy degree in pharmacy, and 2% did not report their degree earned. Respondents’ practice experience ranged from two years to more than 25 years.
Through professional collaboration with the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, NABP was able to draw from a large pool of preceptors to participate in the survey. In addition, the National Association of Pharmacy Regulatory Authorities collaborated with NABP by soliciting responses from pharmacists based in all 10 Canadian provinces, eight of which are associate members of NABP. Responses were also received from all 50 United States as well as Guam and Puerto Rico.
