INTRODUCTION
At least 30% of Doctor of Pharmacy curricula in the United States is made up of experiential learning, and experiential learning is the core component of residency training. Critically, the success of experiential rotations depends on preceptor development. As both volunteer and faculty instructors are responsible for training learners in real-world environments, these preceptors’ professional development is fundamental to the quality of experiential rotations. 1-3 Although accreditation standards on preceptor training exist, specific guidance on the quantity and quality of these programs is limited. 1-3 Thus, schools and colleges of pharmacy vary widely in the resources they allocate to these efforts and in the types of professional development opportunities they offer. 4 Preceptor development has been identified as one of the primary challenges facing experiential offices nationwide, and surveys have identified multiple concerns, including the availability of resources to deliver such training. 5-7 Additional barriers include lack of incentives to participate, inability to track completion, and only few offerings for personalized preceptor development. 4
The American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) recognizes a need for a more collaborative approach to preceptor development that encompasses the expertise and resources of pharmacy schools and professional organizations across the country. The AACP has put greater emphasis on preceptors over the past decade, and preceptor development has been the focus of multiple recent AACP Professional Affairs Committees. 8-10 Membership opportunities for preceptors have expanded, and preceptors now have the opportunity to be recognized by the Association as a Master Preceptor. 8 In addition, the AACP Experiential Education (EE) Section has a standing committee focused on identifying training resources for preceptors each year to assist in their development. As a result of these efforts, the AACP has deemed it critical to formalize a development process for preceptors to ensure they are prepared to successfully train future students and residents.
Given that a preferred delivery mode and medium for development resources are not identified in the literature, schools of pharmacy are pressed to offer a variety of delivery media to satisfy a diverse audience’s needs. 11 Although many institutions offer a myriad of programming options, few have a formalized process that intentionally guides preceptors on an individualized journey to identify their developmental needs and complete programs to address those needs. Therefore, development of a national platform that encourages a self-directed approach, provides motivation for engagement, and offers a diverse array of resources to target a preceptor’s learning needs is warranted; not only is it warranted, but establishing this platform for preceptor development is critical to success. The 2019-2020 AACP Council of Faculties (COF) created the Task Force on Preceptor Engagement and Development to achieve several goals. These goals are, first, to identify the core elements of a platform that would facilitate preceptor development, second, to conceptualize how these elements could be incorporated into the design of an online platform, and third, to collect insight from key stakeholders on strategies that would help promote future engagement with such a platform. The task force’s efforts to address these key areas are outlined below. We challenge readers to consider whether we are now positioned to move to the formal development stage to bring these proposed design strategies to life. We believe that we are.
DISCUSSION
Members assigned to the Task Force on Preceptor Engagement and Development have had vast experience in experiential education (range 5-21 years, mean 13 years as both a preceptor and administrator of an experiential program) and have contributed to preceptor development strategies at their own institutions. In July 2019, the group met with the Chair Liaison during the AACP Annual Meeting in Chicago, Illinois, to review charges and expected deliverables. The committee was divided into two subgroups. One group focused on developing strategies to promote preceptor engagement with the platform, including a process for entry into the site. The second group was charged with identifying the core features the site would offer its users. The Chair was part of each subgroup to ensure clear communication and foster a consistent vision. In January 2020, both subgroups reconvened to review and combine their work. At this time, core elements of the national platform were established and strategies for development were discussed. In addition, the task force worked collaboratively with the AACP Experiential Education Section Preceptor Development Resources Task Force to garner feedback regarding platform design. The final recommendations of the COF Task Force were included in a comprehensive report that was provided to the AACP Board of Directors.
Regarding the platform design, the Task Force on Preceptor Engagement and Development unanimously agreed the platform should focus on continuing professional development (CPD), include SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time-bound) goals, and encourage users to engage in a self-directed assessment-seeking (SDAS) approach. 12-15 Continuing professional development emphasizes self-assessment and self-reflection in the cycle of identifying relevant learning needs and goals, implementing an individualized development plan to accomplish goals, and evaluating the effectiveness of the plan. 12 Self-directed assessment-seeking is the strategy of seeking external sources of feedback and assessment to direct performance improvement in addition to focusing on self-reflection. 15 A desirable outcome of the SDAS approach is that one develops a “coherent self-awareness of one’s strengths and weaknesses” that spurs behavioral change. 15 The unique design of this platform focuses on, offers, and promotes direct self-assessment opportunities while allowing the trainee to bring in additional assessments (eg, peer, student), if desired. It also allows users to choose their own journey and proceed at their own pace. Preceptors can move from point A to point B in a personalized manner; for example, preceptors may choose to omit formal assessments and simply proceed with activities of interest.
The envisioned platform would also offer and illustrate the concept that precepting is a lifelong journey. As learners, preceptors could potentially rejoin novice preceptors as mentors/guides for “mastered topics.” In addition, the design would consider precepting from a holistic perspective to ensure relevance to a broad audience. Ultimately, the impact of the platform would hinge upon its ability to engage preceptors efficiently and effectively, ranging from nascent to seasoned, with relevant, timely, convenient, and robust continuing professional development content.
The proposed core elements were placed into four main categories: overall considerations, design, content, and engagement (Table 1). The evidence-based framework for the platform was supported by a series of publications focused on a similar Canadian initiative, which led to the development of a design for a national preceptor development platform along with a competency framework to guide its use. 11, 16, 17 Additional guiding principles also came from the work of the 2017-2018 AACP Professional Affairs Standing Committee as well as work by Boyle and colleagues on developing an academy of preceptors. 10, 18 The platform design in terms of needs assessment, vision, suggested action, and potential outcome is highlighted in Figure 1. Pivotal pieces of the platform were found to be preceptor interest and continued engagement, and another vital component was the visual display of a preceptor’s journey of development. One suggestion for this visualization was that characters or avatars would travel through various development scenarios, thus adding a gaming aspect to personalize the experience. The platform would also entail the use of simple, automated options to harness the power of technology through digital behavioral change interventions.
Key Considerations for Designing a National Preceptor Development Platform
The approach of the Task Force on Preceptor Engagement and Development for moving a national preceptor development platform from design to reality.
The task force was able to confirm the direction and core elements of the platform by listening to perspectives from the AACP EE Section. A call was sent out in April 2020 to EE Section members to attend a one-hour focus group over Zoom (link available from the corresponding author). Approximately 40 individuals attended the session, representing schools of pharmacy across the country, including both private and public institutions. Prior to this meeting, the first draft of the task force report was shared with attendees. Five key questions were posed involving the following themes: elements that would facilitate engagement, unique and/or essential features that would promote success, potential challenges, and considerations for sustainability. Several pivotal themes emerged from the session and directly aligned with the task force’s goal for the platform: recognition of completed work, elements of sustainability, centralization of the platform, individualization of learning, and advertisement and engagement tools. Overall, feedback from the focus group reaffirmed the ideas of the task force and provided further support for platform development.
As with any new program, anticipated challenges will arise. Logistically creating and sustaining such a platform will be both costly and time-consuming. More importantly, it will require fostering relationships and collaborations with other pharmacy organizations, effective marketing and advertising to garner preceptor awareness, and a concentrated effort to access technology resources. Other challenges for running the platform will be providing a constant motivation for users to repeatedly engage with the platform as well as users having time outside of other workload responsibilities for consistent engagement.
With respect to needed resources, the task force felt it was crucial to identify funding for the requisite information technology (IT) infrastructure. Possible options included integrating the platform with the AACP’s website, making a standalone platform, or developing a marketplace platform. In addition, it would be imperative to secure and fund long-term, dedicated IT support to manage website content (eg, links to external content), maintain database security, provide site/user analytics, and address user technology queries.
Also, because the task force found it important to create a leadership model for sustainability, it recommended that a dedicated AACP staff member be assigned to provide institutional and historical knowledge. The task force further recommended that the AACP EE Section be offered programmatic content oversight and serve as the liaison for other AACP Sections and other pharmacy organizations. In addition, the task force recognized the value of students, residents, and fellows in the development and ongoing evolution of the project.
The task force also deemed it vital to find the resources needed for curating content. The AACP EE Section could form a committee that would be tasked with identifying, organizing, and mapping content to the established outcomes. The committee would include essential members with individual expertise, an AACP liaison, and a staggered two-year term to retain historical information while allowing for an influx of fresh ideas. Additionally, the AACP could collaborate with other organizations including the American College of Clinical Pharmacy (ACCP), the American Pharmacists Association (APhA), the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP), and CEimpact to link to existing preceptor development programs.
Overall, professional preceptor development is fundamental to the success and quality of experiential training. The AACP could serve as a visionary steward for the development of a comprehensive, structured, and collaborative approach to national preceptor development to facilitate meaningful behavioral change. Although many institutions offer a myriad of programming options for their preceptors, a formalized platform that intentionally identifies individual developmental needs and then provides numerous options in one central location to address those needs is optimal. We have conceptualized the design and have a clear outlook for this platform, yet we are at a critical point. To bring these design strategies to reality, we must gather additional feedback from stakeholders who would be involved with both the development and use of the platform, create a detailed business plan, and present this data to AACP leadership to help address important feasibility and support considerations. These steps will ultimately impact the platform’s timeline and availability to preceptors. However, as a plea to move forward, we seek genuine responses from the academy to the following inquiries: Have we convinced you that we are ready for this journey? Do we have what we need to move to the development stage? Is it time to take the leap? Readers are encouraged to provide a response to this commentary.
CONCLUSION
To our knowledge, this would be the first preceptor development platform that aims to offer diverse content and engagement opportunities as well as a self-directed approach. Although there will never be a perfect time to initiate such an endeavor, it seems that demand has been present for years. The Task Force on Preceptor Engagement and Development believes it is critical to train the upcoming workforce for the challenges, demands, and changing landscapes of the profession while aiding schools of pharmacy in the provision of professional development opportunities. By implementing the platform now, we would provide a streamlined, navigable site for preceptors to sharpen their skills, leading to an enhanced quality of experiential rotations.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors would like to acknowledge the collective work of the 2019-20 AACP Experiential Education Section Preceptor Development Resources Task Force along with all members of the 2019-20 AACP Council of Faculties Preceptor Engagement and Development Task Force for contributing feedback for the platform’s design.
- Received February 15, 2021.
- Accepted September 27, 2021.
- © 2022 American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy
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