Establishing a Preceptor Site for Oncology

HOPA Now is the official podcast of the Hematology/Oncology/Pharmacy Association, an organization dedicated to supporting pharmacy practitioners and promoting the advancement of Hematology/Oncology/Pharmacy to optimize the care of individuals impacted by cancer.

 

In this episode of HOPA Now, Nelly Adel, PharmD, BCOP, BCPS and Deanna Argentieri, PharmD, aim to identify the basic requirements to have students on an oncology APPE site, illustrate the various structures for APPE rotations, set expectations for students versus residents on same rotation, highlight the requirements for delivering and providing timely and appropriate feedback to enhance student performance in an oncology setting with a focus in the ambulatory setting, and demonstrate the essential roles of an oncology pharmacist career in Oncology.

This podcast is part of a General Pharmacy Education Self-Paced Study Module in HOPA Learn. To view the full course and claim credit, please visit HOPA Learn and register for the course.

 

In this episode, you will learn:

 

Guidelines for establishing an oncology site

• Determine the affiliations established between the site where you are practicing and the school of pharmacy.
• Considerations include student access to a computer, distance from the university, access to EMRs, and the duration of the rotation.
• Qualifications of preceptors and student interest in oncology
• Article information outlining the process and guidelines Creighton University pharmacists and faculty used to establish an oncology elective
• Understand the specific school curriculum and guidelines for APPE.
• Identify prior student experiences and rotations to determine interest.

 

Setting expectations for students in their rotations

• Communication, interest, and a clearly-defined plan is a critical step to understanding what the student is hoping to get out of the rotation.
• Investing time in students will ensure that you have their best interests in mind.
• Recommendations for syllabus details that will clearly outline your expectations.
• Taking on students is a time commitment from everyone, but setting expectations will result in a greater payoff in the end.

 

Handling students vs. residents

• Many practice sites have students and residents — be sure to delineate between student and resident expectations.
• The benefits of providing layered learning as an effective way to integrate multiple learners into a practice setting.
• Clearly define the goals and objectives of the rotation, preceptor, and learner.
• Students and residents need to have clear and distinct differences between their objectives and expectations, including in their rubrics.
• Students and residents should NOT have access to the same information based on their differing levels of verification.

 

Feedback for students vs. residents

• Feedback is crucial in learner growth and essential to help students develop the necessary clinical skills for practice.
• Feedback should be the backbone of the learning experience.
• Feedback can be formal or informal but should be done regularly to assess performance and set future goals and expectations.
• Ongoing feedback helps to encourage interest and motivation and has been linked to satisfaction of the preceptor.
• Feedback allows for self-reflection and the ability to assess their impact on the team/service.
• Ideas for giving effective feedback that is descriptive, adapted to the situation at hand, succinct, and include first-hand knowledge
• Ineffective feedback that should be avoided in all situations

 

Role Model — Careers in Oncology

• Role modeling is one of the crucial roles of a preceptor as it demonstrates the skills that a pharmacist performs in a given time as well as shows to the student how they can practice in the future.
• Precepting can give students various insights on how an oncology pharmacist can practice in any setting, including inpatient and outpatient settings.
• Roles can extend to hospital satellites, a clinical specialist, a manager, a coordinator, a faculty, and more.
• A variety of options for practice can vary among several hospital systems.

 

Mentioned in This Episode:

HOPA

 

Literature for this Episode:

 

Nystrom KK, Pick AM. An oncology pharmacy practice elective course for third-year pharmacy students. Am J Pharm Educ. 2013; 77(1) Article 12.

 

Bates JS, Buie LW. A study of layered learning in oncology. Am J Pharm Educ. 2016; 80(4) Article 68.

 

Hall A, Miguel A, Weitzel K. Providing feedback to learners in outpatient and ambulatory care practice settings Curr Pharm Teach Learn. 2015; 7:348-356

 

Quotes:

 

“There are many opportunities to teach a student on rotation, not only about the oncology topics but insights into future career options.” — Nelly Adel

 

“Investing time in students from the beginning of their practice experience really helps to establish that trust and assurance that you have their best interests in mind.”
— Deanna Argentieri

 

“Keep in mind that the senior preceptor is the major driver of pharmacy services.”
— Deanna Argentieri

 

“For preceptors, it’s important to note that when discussing topics or patient presentations there is a variation between what a resident can see versus a student.” — Nelly Adel

 

“Feedback should be the backbone of the student’s learning experience. It should be informal, given regularly, and in a timely manner.” — Deanna Argentieri