Beyond the Classroom: An Observational Study to Assess Student Pharmacists’ Confidence and Perception of a High-Fidelity Manikin Chemotherapy Infusion Reaction Simulation

Abstract

Objective: To assess the impact of a high-fidelity manikin chemotherapy infusion simulation on student pharmacists’ confidence in applying clinical knowledge and perception of oncology pharmacy practice. Methods: One cohort of third professional year student pharmacists completed a high-fidelity manikin simulation during the last week of their didactic training. The 10-minute manikin experience simulated an acute paclitaxel infusion reaction, requiring students to apply their knowledge on how to provide patient care during a chemotherapy-induced infusion reaction. A pre- and post-survey was administered to determine whether there was a change in students’ confidence and perception. Results: Thirty-three student pharmacists (62%) completed the pre- and post-surveys and manikin simulation. A statistically significant improvement was seen in median confidence scores when comparing pre- and post-questions of all 10 survey items (P < 0.001). Students’ perception of oncology pharmacy and the manikin simulation had mean of 4.4 on a 0- to 5-point Likert scale. Conclusion: The high-fidelity manikin experience improved student pharmacists’ post-survey confidence of applying clinical skills. In addition, students’ perception of oncology pharmacy improved and the use of a manikin simulation to support didactic learning was seen as an additional avenue for delivering didactic curriculum. This study explored the feasibility of introducing a manikin simulation into the oncology pharmacy curriculum and the benefit of providing hands-on application of clinical skills to support didactic concept-based learning.