Short and long-term impact of pharmacovigilance training on the pharmacovigilance knowledge of medical students.
OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to evaluate the short and long-term impact of pharmacovigilance (PV) training on the 5th year medical students' knowledge about definitions and on the awareness of the regulatory aspects in PV.


METHODS
In academic year 2010/11, the students completed structured, questionnaire before and just after training. They also completed the same questionnaire 1-year after the training.


RESULTS
The students' knowledge about PV significantly increased after training in the short term (P < 0.001). However, the improvement decreased significantly in the long-term (P < 0.001). Although long-term scores were higher than the baseline score, the difference was not statistically significant. Total scores were 17.5 ± 2.0, 20.8 ± 2.0 and 18.0 ± 2.5; before, at short and long-term after the training.


CONCLUSIONS
PV training increased the students' knowledge significantly. However, in the long-term, the impact of the training is limited. Repeated training of PV should be planned.
Department of Medical Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Dokuz Eylul University, Balcova, Izmir, Turkey.
M Aylin
MA
Arici
Department of Medical Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Dokuz Eylul University, Balcova, Izmir, Turkey.
Ayse
A
Gelal
Department of Public Health, School of Medicine, Dokuz Eylul University, Balcova, Izmir, Turkey.
Yucel
Y
Demiral
Department of Medical Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Dokuz Eylul University, Balcova, Izmir, Turkey.
Yesim
Y
Tuncok
D000328:Adult; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000379:methods*; D004521:Educational Measurement; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D060735:Pharmacovigilance; D013337:Students, Medical; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors; D055815:Young Adult
Awareness; impact; knowledge; medical training; pharmacovigilance