Pharm.D. Program - Practical Experience

Students in the Pharm.D. program are required to gain experience in the practice of pharmacy. This is accomplished though the required practical experience courses listed below. This training meets all of the practical training requirements of the Indiana State Board of Pharmacy for licensure in Indiana.

The Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE) program

The 9-credit hour IPPE course series at Purdue University was developed in response to accreditation standards set forth by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) to provide early experiential learning opportunities for pharmacy students throughout the curriculum. Students explore the concept of professionalism, develop practice skills, discover career options, collaborate with interdisciplinary healthcare professionals and gain hands-on experience with diverse patient populations in the delivery of holistic pharmaceutical care. Reflection and discussion are incorporated throughout the IPPE program. Through the entire series of experiential courses (IPPE and APPE), students progress from student pharmacist level to professionals who are practice ready and equipped to enter the workforce.

The Purdue University IPPE course series includes:

PHPR 368 - Pharmacy Skills and Patient Counseling (1^st professional year; 1 cr.)

Pharmacy Skills and Patient Counseling is an introductory course in community pharmacy practice that combines 15 hours of recitation / group discussion with 30 practical experience hours in the Purdue University Pharmacy. The Purdue University Pharmacy has a two-fold mission:

1. To provide instruction and community pharmacy experience to students
2. To provide prescription services to students, faculty and staff

First year pharmacy students are mentored by faculty instructors, staff pharmacists and advance practice students to meet course goals and objectives. Students learn the Top 100 drugs, dispense medications and counsel patients.

PHPR 433 - Community Pharmacy IPPE (2^nd professional year; 4 cr.)

The Community Pharmacy IPPE rotation involves a minimum of 160 hours of unpaid experience in a community pharmacy setting. Students are involved in drug dispensing, pharmacy operations, and direct patient care. Through the variety of activities and required assignments, students grow professionally and make valuable contributions to the experiential site. Students are placed in sites in accordance with their professional needs and are supervised by pharmacist preceptors. The rotation allows students the opportunity to apply learned knowledge and skills to the range of professional services and activities delivered in the pharmacy practice setting.

PHPR 434 - Institutional Pharmacy IPPE (3^rd professional year; 4 cr.)

The Institutional Pharmacy IPPE rotation involves a minimum of 160 hours of unpaid experience in a hospital pharmacy setting. Students are involved in drug dispensing, pharmacy operations, and patient care. Through the variety of activities and required assignments, students grow professionally and make valuable contributions to the experiential site. Students are placed in sites in accordance with their professional needs and are supervised by pharmacist preceptors. The rotation allows students the opportunity to apply learned knowledge and skills to the range of professional services and activities delivered in the pharmacy practice setting.

The Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE) Program

The APPE program encompasses the entire last year of the PharmD program and is composed of 40 weeks of clerkship rotations (10 individual 4 week rotations). Requirements include 2 CLPH 885 inpatient rotations, 2 CLPH 888 ambulatory rotations, 1 CLPH 885 Hospital Operations II rotation, 1 CLPH 888 Community Pharmacy Operations II rotation, and 4 CLPH 889 elective rotations. Brief descriptions of the courses can be found below.

CLPH 885 inpatient rotations

These rotations include experiences in hospitals following bed-bound patients. Students follow all assigned patients and make recommendations regarding medication use under the supervision of the preceptor. Example inpatient rotations include adult medicine, infectious diseases, critical care, cardiology, nephrology, pediatrics, etc.

CLPH 888 ambulatory rotations

These rotations include experiences in clinics and community pharmacies where the focus is on medication counseling. Examples include family practice clinics, community health clinics, lipid clinics, Coumadin clinics etc.

CLPH 885 Hospital Operations II/CLPH 888 Community Pharmacy Operations II

The Hospital and Community Operations II rotations are meant to build on the Operations I rotations completed during the IPPE portion of the program. They expose students to other practice responsibilities beyond the traditional processing and dispensing of medications seen during Operations I. Example activities might include recommending and instructing patients on the proper use of OTC medications and self care devices, attending administrative meetings, writing chart/medical record notes, attending a code in the hospital etc.

CLPH 889 elective rotations

Elective rotations are included to round out a student's schedule and provide experience in many other unique areas of pharmacy practice. Examples of elective rotations include drug information, community or hospital pharmacy administration, academia, research, long-term-care/consulting practice etc.