Analysis of compounded pharmaceutical products to teach the importance of quality in an applied pharmaceutics laboratory course.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the effectiveness of a product-analysis laboratory exercise in teaching students the importance of quality in pharmaceutical compounding.


METHODS
Second-year pharmacy students (N=77) participated in a pharmaceutical compounding laboratory exercise and subsequently analyzed their final product using ultraviolet (UV) spectrometry.


RESULTS
Reflection, survey instruments, and quiz questions were used to measure how well students understood the importance of quality in their compounded products. Product analysis showed that preparations compounded by students had an error range of 0.6% to 140%, with an average error of 23.7%. Students' reflections cited common sources of error, including inaccurate weighing, contamination, and product loss during both the compounding procedure and preparation of the sample for analysis. Ninety percent of students agreed that the exercise improved their understanding of the importance of quality in compounded pharmaceutical products. Most students (85.7%) reported that this exercise inspired them to be more diligent in their preparation of compounded products in their future careers.


CONCLUSIONS
Integrating an analytical assessment during a pharmaceutical compounding laboratory can enhance students' understanding of quality of compounded pharmaceutical products. It can also provide students a chance to reflect on sources of error to improve their compounding technique in the future.
Wegmans School of Pharmacy, St. John Fisher College, Rochester, New York.
Alyssa
A
Pignato
Wegmans School of Pharmacy, St. John Fisher College, Rochester, New York.
Christine R
CR
Birnie
D032882:Comprehension; D003479:Curriculum; D004339:Drug Compounding / Q000592:standards*; D004512:Education, Pharmacy / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D006801:Humans; D007753:Laboratories / Q000592:standards*; D010465:Perception; D015397:Program Evaluation; D011786:Quality Control; D013056:Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet / Q000592:standards; D013339:Students, Pharmacy / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*
analysis; compounding; pharmaceutics; pharmacy practice laboratory