Reflections on a decade of progress in pharmacy education: reasons for celebration.

The profession of pharmacy recently passed a historic milestone that merits recognition, discussion, and celebration. I am referring to July 2010, which marked the passage of 10 years since all entry classes of pharmacy students were enrolled in doctor of pharmacy (PharmD)only programs. Driven by the profession’s aspirations for a larger role in health care, the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), a decade ago, began accrediting only pharmacy education programs that met its standards for the PharmD degree. The successful transformation of pharmacy education over the past 10 years is a tribute to the leadership of the administrators and faculty members at accredited colleges of pharmacy, the dedication of practitioners who take students under their wings for experiential instruction, the support of ACPE’s 3 sponsors (American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy, American Pharmacists Association, and National Association of Boards of Pharmacy), the guidance and advice of other pharmacy organizations, and the work of the board of directors, other volunteers, and staff members of ACPE. All of the colleges and schools of pharmacy in operation 10 years ago met the deadline for conversion from the bachelor of science (BS) degree to the PharmD entrylevel (first professional) degree. This was an enormous achievement. It involved marshalling resources for an additional year of instruction and making significant changes in the content and structure of the curriculum, including the addition of introductory pharmacy practice experiences (IPPE) and expanded advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPE). Demonstrating immense ingenuity, many colleges and schools of pharmacy during this period pioneered new ways of applying their resources to meet the challenge of preparing new pharmacists for an expanded role in health care. These innovations included: d Distance education, both synchronous and asynchronous d Creation of branch campuses (with or without distance education) d 3-calendar-year curricula d 2-plus-2 curricula d Modular curricula organized by body organ system/disease states d Integrated instruction in the biomedical, pharmaceutical, social/behavioral/administrative, and clinical sciences d Team-based instruction d Problem-based learning initiatives d Service-learning initiatives d Expanded use of high-tech simulation in teaching d Facilitated dual-degree curricula (PharmD with master of business administration [MBA] degree, master of public health [MPH] degree, doctorate [PhD] degree, etc) This spirit of innovation among colleges and schools of pharmacy was supported by the revisions in the standards for pharmacy education that ACPE adopted in 2007. Examples of that support through revised standards include: d Required interviews of student applicants as part of the admission process d Greater use of active-learning techniques d Outcomes-based assessment of student learning and curricular effectiveness d Outcomes-based programmatic assessment d Greater interprofessional instruction d More curricular emphasis on medication safety, cultural competence, professionalism, and research principles d Higher expectations for quality IPPEs and APPEs d Accommodation of new areas of science in pharmacy, including pharmacoeconomics and pharmacogenomics d Expanded use of portfolios to document faculty member and student progress and competencies d Improved preparation of preceptors as educators, assessors of student competence, and innovators in practice Corresponding Author: Peter H. Vlasses, PharmD, DSc(Hon). Executive Director, Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education, 20 North Clark Street, Suite 2500, Chicago, Illinois 60602-5109. Tel: 312-664-3575. Web site: www.acpe-accredit.org American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education 2010; 74 (9) Article 174.