Research Paper
Pharmacy student perceptions regarding understanding of and confidence in literature evaluation following a student-led journal club

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cptl.2019.02.018Get rights and content

Abstract

Background

Journal clubs are commonly used by healthcare professionals, including pharmacists, as a means of analyzing and applying research to clinical practice. The purpose of this research is to determine if participation in student-led journal clubs impacts students' understanding of and confidence in literature evaluation.

Methods

First- through third-year pharmacy students attended co-curricular journal club sessions. Students attending these sessions completed a questionnaire (Journal Club Comprehension and Confidence Instrument [JCCCI]) immediately prior to [pre-survey] and following [post-survey] the journal club session (journal club group). The JCCCI was also delivered to student pharmacists not attending the co-curricular journal club sessions (control group). Wilcoxon Signed-Rank tests were used to compare the responses to the JCCCI questionnaire. Analysis was conducted using SPSS. This research was approved by the University's Institutional Review Board.

Results

A total of 182 student pharmacists completed the survey (journal club group, n = 52; control group, n = 130). There were significant differences in the pre- and post-survey of the journal club group in eight of the 10 competencies; “process”, “background”, “methods”, “intervention/treatment”, “statistical analysis”, “results”, “clinical significance” and “strengths/limitations”. There were significant differences discovered between the journal club group (post-survey) and control group in three of the 10 competencies; “process”, “importance”, and “intervention/treatment”.

Conclusions

This study demonstrates that participation in a journal club yielded significant improvements in how students self-rated their confidence in and understanding of literature evaluation. Based on students' self-assessed understanding of and confidence in literature evaluation, student-led journal club sessions conducted outside of the traditional pharmacy curriculum offer a perceived benefit to students.

Introduction

Journal clubs, described as a group of individuals who meet to discuss and critically assess the clinical information provided in current medical journals, have been referenced in North American literature as early as 1875.1 Current professional health education programs use journal clubs as an educational tool to assist in literature evaluation, develop critical-thinking skills, and establish evidence-based medicine practices.2 Although traditionally used by medical students and residents, journal clubs, as a teaching method, have also been utilized for educational experiences involving pharmacy students and pharmacy residents.3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13

The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) includes literature retrieval and review related to drug information activities as a necessary objective of postgraduate year one (PGY1) pharmacy residency programs.14 Furthermore, the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) “Standards 2016” considers the ability to evaluate scientific literature as a key element of foundational knowledge “…deemed essential to the contemporary practice of pharmacy in a healthcare environment that demands inter-professional collaboration and professional accountability for holistic patient well-being”.15 Additionally, the Center for the Advancement of Pharmacy Education (CAPE) Outcomes include evaluation of scientific literature as a component of foundational knowledge in the doctor of pharmacy curriculum.16

Current literature regarding the effectiveness of journal clubs as a tool to support evidence-based decision making and improve clinical decision making is unclear.17 A systematic review of eighteen studies reported improvements in reading behavior, confidence in critical appraisal, critical appraisal test scores, and ability to use findings; however, it was unable to determine the effectiveness of journal clubs in supporting evidence-based decision making due to heterogeneous interventions.17 Another systematic review of 20 articles sampling undergraduate health students evaluating strategies for teaching evidence-based practice found a multifaceted approach, including journal clubs, as the best method when teaching evidence based medicine.18

In the field of pharmacy, Arif et al.8 found that incorporating journal clubs into the advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) was an effective method of teaching literature-evaluation skills to pharmacy students. Fourth-year students in the study reported that journal club assignments improved their understanding of different study designs, statistics, limitations and strengths of a study, and relevance to patient care. A study evaluating the effectiveness of a pharmacy student led internet-based journal club found that learning objectives were met and there was a perceived improvement of breadth and depth of discussion.13 Additionally, the implementation of an elective evidence based medicine course during APPEs, which included journal club simulations, was found to improve skills in applying evidence based medicine to patient care compared to other students when evaluated by preceptors.19

“Primary literature” evaluating student perceptions regarding the impact of a student-led journal club activity, as a whole, are limited.8,11,13,20 A student professional organization at Mercer University College of Pharmacy conducted research on voluntary, student-led journal club sessions to fill this knowledge-gap. The objective of this study was to determine whether pharmacy students experienced perceived benefits resulting from participating in a co-curricular journal club session. The aim of this report is to describe any associated student-perceived improvements in confidence regarding literature evaluation and understanding.

Section snippets

Participants

Student pharmacists were eligible to participate in this study if they were all actively enrolled in Mercer University College of Pharmacy and were entering their first-, second-, or third-professional year of school. Final professional year students were excluded because they were not available to participate live and in person during journal club sessions and were likely being simultaneously exposed to literature evaluation during their APPEs. Within the doctor of pharmacy didactic

Participants

Fourteen journal club sessions were conducted during the study period. A total of 182 student pharmacists completed the survey (52 in the journal club group and 130 in the control group), of which 71 were first-year students, 48 second-year students, and 63 third-year students. The majority of respondents were female (66.4%), between the ages of 20–24 (47.3%), attained a bachelor's degree prior to pharmacy school (73.1%), and had previous experience in a community pharmacy setting. There was a

Discussion

Journal clubs have been used routinely in academic and clinical institutions as a teaching method for healthcare professionals. This study attempted to determine whether pharmacy students perceived benefits resulting from participating in a co-curricular, student-led journal club session. First-, second-, or third-professional year pharmacy students reported their understanding of and confidence in literature evaluation using the JCCCI. Overall, students self-reported benefits from

Conclusions

Journal clubs are used as an educational tool to assist in literature evaluation, develop critical-thinking skills, and establish evidence based medicine practices among healthcare professionals and students. Based on students' self-assessed understanding of and confidence in literature evaluation, student-led journal club sessions conducted outside of the traditional pharmacy curriculum offer a perceived benefit to students. Implementation of similar journal club focused initiatives by other

Conflict of interest

Researchers involved in this study do not have any actual or perceived conflicts of interest.

Disclosure(s)

This research did not receive any specific grants from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for profit sectors.

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    From learning to decision-making: a cross-sectional survey of a clinical pharmacist-steered journal club

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    1

    Pharm.D. Candidate at the time of manuscript writing.

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