Quality improvement analysis in a pharmacy skills laboratory course to enhance student pharmacists’ education

Background: When students are admitted to pharmacy school, the intention is for an equitable learning environment. However, students with prior pharmacy work experience may be at an advantage in their pharmacy education compared to those without. Objective: To assess the changes made to a skills laboratory course to resolve unintended inequities in course marks between students with and without prior pharmacy work experience. Methods: This retrospective, observational, cross-sectional study assessed the impact of previous pharmacy work experience on the outcomes of five class cohorts on scores from: The top 300 exam, pharmacy dispensing activities, and overall marks Course improvements included team dispensing activities and increasing marked prescriptions from nine to fifteen. Wilcoxon ranked sum test and multivariable logistic regression were used to assess the relationship between prior work experience and course outcomes. Results: Over 50% of students in all cohorts had pharmacy work experience. Bivariate analysis showed no significant differences in Top 300 marks or dispensing activity marks between students with and without prior experience, except in Fall 2020. Conclusion: Unintended course inequities were addressed through modifications that fostered teamwork among students with diverse work experiences and increased the number of dispensing activities.