title: Patient simulation software to augment an advanced pharmaceutics course.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To implement and assess the effectiveness of adding a pharmaceutical care simulation program to an advanced therapeutics course.
  
  
  METHODS
  PharmaCAL (University of Pittsburgh), a software program that uses a branched-outcome decision making model, was used to create patient simulations to augment lectures given in the course. In each simulation, students were presented with a challenge, given choices, and then provided with consequences specific to their choices.
  
  
  METHODS
  A survey was administered at the end of the course and students indicated the simulations were enjoyable (92%), easy to use (90%), stimulated interest in critically ill patients (82%), and allowed for application of lecture material (91%). A 5-item presimulation and postsimulation test on the anemia simulation was administered to assess learning. Students answered significantly more questions correctly on the postsimulation test than on the presimulation test (p < 0.001). Seventy-eight percent of students answered the same 5 questions correctly on the final examination.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patient simulation software that used a branched-outcome decision model was an effective supplement to class lectures in an advanced pharmaceutics course and was well-received by pharmacy students.
authors.affiliation: benedictnj@upmc.edu
authors.forename: Neal
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Benedict
authors.forename: Kristine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Schonder
mesh_terms: D003198:Computer Simulation; D003479:Curriculum; D003657:Decision Making; D003661:Decision Support Techniques; D004512:Education, Pharmacy / Q000379:methods*; D004521:Educational Measurement; D006801:Humans; D012984:Software; D013339:Students, Pharmacy