Kevin A. Clauson

To explore knowledge and use of drug information resources by pharmacists and identify patterns influenced by gender and age-group classification. A survey questionnaire was mailed nationwide to 1,000 practitioners working in community (n = 500) and hospital (n = 500) settings who answer drug information questions as part of their expected job responsibilities. Responses pertaining to drug information resource use and knowledge of different types of drug-related queries, resource media preferences, and perceived adequacy of resources maintained in the pharmacy were analyzed by gender and age group. The t statistic was used to test for significant differences of means and percentages between genders and between age groups. Descriptive statistics were used to characterize other findings. Gender and age group classification influenced patterns of knowledge and use of drug information resources by pharmacists. They also affected pharmacists’ perceptions of the most common types of questions prompting them to consult a drug information reference, as well as the resources consulted. Micromedex, exclusively available in electronic format, was the most commonly consulted resource overall by pharmacists. Lexi-Comp Online was the leading choice by women, preferred over Micromedex, but was not one of the top two resources selected by men. This study successfully identified the influence of gender and age-group classification in assessing drug information resource knowledge and use of general and specific types of drug-related queries.

Background: Social media may offer a means to engage students, facilitate collaborative learning, and tailor educational delivery for diverse learning styles. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to characterize social media awareness among pharmacy students and determine perceptions toward integrating these tools in education. Methods: A 23-item survey was administered to 1st-year students at a multicampus college of pharmacy. Results: Students (95% response rate; N = 196) most commonly used wikis (97%), social networking (91%), and videosharing (84%). Tools reported as never used or unknown included social bookmarking (89%), collaborative writing (84%), and RSS readers (73%). Respondents indicated that educational integration of social media would impact their ability to learn in a positive/very positive manner (75%) and make them feel connected/very connected (68%). Conclusions: Selectively targeting social media for educational integration and instructing pharmacy students how to employ a subset of these tools may be useful in engaging them and encouraging lifelong learning.

Objective. To assess the impact of an audience response system (ARS) on student engagement at a multi-campus college of pharmacy.Methods. An online questionnaire was designed and administered to measure the impact of an ARS on student engagement, distance education, projected use, and satisfaction among pharmacy students for a course delivered across 3 sites via synchronous video transmission.Results. Students reported that use of the ARS made it easier to participate (85.3%) and helped them to focus (75.7%) in classes when the lecturer was physically at a different site. They also valued that the ARS allowed them to respond anonymously (93.2%). A minority of students indicated that use of the ARS was distracting (11.8%).Conclusions. Implementation of an ARS was associated with positive student perceptions of engagement and may improve feelings of connectedness among students at schools with multiple sites. Use of ARSs could also represent a cognitive intercession strategy to help reduce communication app...

E-prescribing may help reduce medical errors. Study objectives were to determine use, perceptions, and a model of adoption regarding e-prescribing. A questionnaire was developed and sent to pharmacists in Puerto Rico. Multiple regression analyses were used to test a model of influences on adoption. 438 pharmacists responded. The overall adoption model was significant. Perceived advantages had a positive influence on adoption. Pharmacist groups demonstrating higher adoption included: male > female, chain > independent, younger > older (all p < 0.05). Barriers had a negative influence (p = 0.01). The model employed here can help explain pharmacist adoption and integration of e-prescribing.

The characteristics of pharmacist blogs were examined. Internet search engines, blog aggregators, and blog rolls were used to identify pharmacist blogs. Six categories were developed to evaluate blogs, including practice-based topics, identifying information, positive language, critical language, professionalism, and miscellaneous. The most recent five posts on each pharmacist blog were reviewed. Descriptive statistics were used to characterize the results. A total of 117 blogs were identified, 44 of which were designated as pharmacist blogs. No blogs contained patient-identifying information. Anonymity was maintained by 68.2% of bloggers. Bloggers practiced in community (43.1%) and noncommunity (43.1%) settings. Pharmacists most commonly used positive language to describe the profession (32%), other health care professionals (25%), and patients (25%). The highest rates of critical language were found in descriptions of patients (57%) and other health care professionals (44%). Almost half of pharmacist blogs contained explicit or unprofessional language. Overall, community practitioner blogs were substantially more likely than noncommunity practitioner blogs to use unprofessional and critical language. Twenty-five percent of pharmacist bloggers also maintained a microblog (e.g., Twitter) account. A search using Internet search engines, blog aggregators, and blog rolls identified 117 blogs, 44 of which met the study criteria for designation as pharmacist blogs. The majority of pharmacist blogs included some type of discussion of pharmacologic therapies. Pharmacists most commonly used positive language to describe the profession, other health care professionals, and patients. The highest rates of critical language were found in descriptions of patients and other health care professionals.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess readability of patient and health care professional targeted dietary supplement (DS) leaflets used for diabetes mellitus (DM) and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) with a novel measurement tool and Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL). Methods: Patient and professional leaflets for DS used to treat DM and CFS from the Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database (NMCD) and Natural Standard (NS) databases were evaluated. Leaflets were analyzed using FKGL and the author-developed health information readability analyzer (HIReA). HIReA integrates lexical, semantic, syntactic, cohesion, and style features and yields values of −1 (very hard) to 1 (very easy). Results: Patient-targeted leaflets substantially exceeded the consensus readability level (6th grade) as assessed by both FKGL (grade 13.0767) and HIReA (−0.2360). Professional leaflets were similarly more difficult to read as scored by HIReA (−0.7065) and FKGL (grade 14.7429). Most and least difficult-to-read sections in patient leaflets (NS/NMCD) were Related Terms (−0.8863)/Other Names (−0.8146), and Safety Concerns (0.0821)/Scientific Evidence (0.0629), respectively. Overall, leaflets in NS (−0.5721) were more difficult to read than those in NMCD (−0.3704). These differences appeared to be less pronounced when FKGL was used to assess the readability, indicating its lack of preciseness. Conclusions: Readability for patient targeted DS leaflets is far more difficult than recommended levels. HIReA is a more precise method to measure readability than FKGL. The disparity between targeted levels of readability and measured levels may contribute to a lack of understanding by patients, with a resulting negative impact on adherence and outcomes.

A 68-question Internet survey was used to determine the impact of televised direct-to-consumer advertising (DTCA) on consumer-initiated medication changes for the treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and social anxiety disorder (SAD). Of the 427 respondents, 10% that viewed DTCA for GERD and 6% that viewed DTCA for SAD reported that they subsequently initiated a conversation with their physician. Nearly half of respondents, 47.4% for GERD and 40% for SAD, reported that a change in therapy occurred as a direct result of these discussions. Televised DTCA for these two drug classes can have a significant impact on patient-initiated prescription requests.