Early experience with a health promotion course for pharmacy students in Indonesia

Abstract

Objective:

To implement a new health promotion course as part of pharmacy public health practices and to identify pharmacy students’ knowledge, perceived role and self-efficacy with respect to what was learned through this.

Method:

A total of 119 fifth-year pharmacy students undertook a new health promotion course in a pharmacy school in Yogyakarta. A questionnaire consisting of 30-item knowledge scale, a 6-item perceived-role scale, and a 9-adjective self-efficacy scale was used to measure students’ knowledge and attitudes before and after the new course.

Results:

Of the 119 pharmacy students completing the questionnaire, 77% were female, with a mean age of 22.8 years, and 79% had BPharm degree with a grade point average in excess of 3.00. A significant post intervention improvement (p < .001) was found in terms of knowledge, perceived role and self-efficacy. The majority of students perceived that their involvement in health promotion activities would help the community and have a positive impact on their future careers.

Conclusion:

Pharmacy students gained positive knowledge, perceived role and self-efficacy towards a health promotion course. Strategies to ensure that positive attitudes translate into actual behaviours of engaging in health promotion activities are needed. Sustainability and the integration of health promotion activities into the curriculum of pharmacy schools nation-wide in Indonesia should be encouraged.