title: A medical mission to Guatemala as an advanced pharmacy practice experience.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe the development and outcomes of an advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) for a medical mission trip to Guatemala.
  
  
  METHODS
  Pre-mission preparation and post-mission reflection activities were combined with in-country activities to create a 5-week APPE. During the 10-day medical mission trip, pharmacy students dispensed medications, counseled patients, conducted quality improvement assessments, and presented their findings and experiences as part of an interdisciplinary health care team.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The students who completed the mission trip met the objectives of the APPE and reported substantial learning in the areas of interdisciplinary teamwork and cultural competency. All students' scores on the Inventory for Assessing the Process of Cultural Competence-Student Version (IAPCC-SV) increased. The majority (81%) of student-generated quality improvement recommendations were implemented by the mission team.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The medical mission APPE provided a rich learning environment for pharmacy students and resulted in modifications to the medical mission operation. This type of APPE could be implemented in other colleges of pharmacy via formation of partnerships with established medical mission teams as this one was.
authors.affiliation: North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND 58108, USA. amy.werremeyer@ndsu.edu
authors.forename: Amy B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Werremeyer
authors.forename: Elizabeth T
authors.initials: ET
authors.lastname: Skoy
mesh_terms: D054521:Cultural Competency; D006166:Guatemala; D006801:Humans; D008493:Medical Missions / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010593:Pharmaceutical Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D024382:Professional Role; D058996:Quality Improvement / Q000458:organization & administration; D013339:Students, Pharmacy / Q000523:psychology*
keywords: advanced pharmacy practice experience; experiential learning; international practice experience; medical mission