PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Smith, Michael A.
AU  - Siemianowski, Laura A.
AU  - Benedict, Neal
TI  - Virtual Patient Case Sharing Across Two Schools of Pharmacy
AID  - 10.5688/ajpe809153
DP  - 2016 Nov 25
TA  - American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education
PG  - 153
VI  - 80
IP  - 9
4099  - http://www.ajpe.org/content/80/9/153.short
4100  - http://www.ajpe.org/content/80/9/153.full
SO  - Am J Pharm Educ2016 Nov 25; 80
AB  - Objective. To expand the use of virtual patients at 2 schools of pharmacy through virtual patient case sharing.Design. Faculty members at two schools of pharmacy collaborated to expand the use of virtual patients. Two simulation programs, vpSim and DecisionSim (Decision Simulation, LLC, Chadsford, PA), were used to create interactive patient cases for a required course and an elective course at the different schools. Each school developed cases for their own use and then shared the cases with the other school.Assessment. The development, sharing, and subsequent modification of cases were examined using a standardized data collection form completed by both schools. Survey instruments were used to gather data regarding faculty perception and student satisfaction. Pre- and post-tests were administered to assess student learning. Five cases were developed and shared between the institutions. The time spent constructing new cases (22 hours/case) was significantly longer than the time spent modifying the shared cases (1.2 hours/case). Faculty members and students were largely satisfied with case sharing and the use of virtual patient cases, respectively. Virtual patients significantly enhanced student learning of material (mean score: 3.2 vs 3.6 on a 5-point scale).Conclusions. The sharing of virtual patient cases may allow institutions to overcome barriers to implementation of virtual patient programs, namely faculty resources, while improving student learning and satisfaction.