Ø Field Experience
Description, timing, and number of credit hours:
The actual practice experiences include direct interaction with diverse patient populations in a variety of practice settings. All PharmD students should provide evidence of at least 1440 hours of actual training in a community pharmacy or hospital pharmacy that matches requirements from most schools of pharmacy abroad. This field training is under the auspices of the Jordan Pharmacist Association. This is a requirement for licensing by the Jordanian Pharmacist Association (JPA) and the Ministry of Health.
The School of Pharmacy mandates that 480 hours of field training be under its direct supervision through the Assistant Dean for Training as part of Pharmaceutical Field Training I and II. 1. For “Pharmaceutical Field Training I” [2 credit hours, third year level] and “Pharmaceutical Field Training II” [2 credit hours, fouth year level] (1210401 and 1220402), students are trained by working licensed pharmacists.
PharmD students also undergo patient-centered training through:
“Pharmacy Practice III (1203516) [1 credit hour, fifth year level];
Internal Medicine clerkship I and II 1203601/1203602 [7 credit hours each, sixth year level];
Pediatric Clerkship 1203603 [4 credit hours each, sixth year level];
Psychiatric and Geriatric clerkship 1203604 [2 credit hours each, sixth-year level];
Gynecology and Obstetrics clerkship 1203605 [2 credit hours each, sixth-year level];
Surgery clerkship 1203606 [7 credit hours each, sixth-year level];
Clinical Pharmacokinetics Clerkship 1203607 [2 credit hours each, sixth year level];
and Ambulatory Care clerkship 1203608 [3 credit hours each, sixth year level],
while BSc students undergo Clinical Pharmacy Practice course (1203561) which exposes them to actual in-hospital practice experience.
PharmD students currently undergo clinical training in hospitals such as the University of Jordan Hospital, Royal Medical Services, Queen Alia Cancer Center, Psychiatry Unit at Marka, and King Hussein Cancer Center. The training covers internal medicine (14 weeks), pediatrics (4 weeks), surgery (2 weeks), ambulatory care (3 weeks), obstetrics and gynecology (2 weeks), psychiatry and geriatrics (2 weeks), and clinical pharmacokinetics (2 weeks). The training lasts for two semesters, totaling 28 weeks, from 8 am until 2 pm. Students in internal medicine are trained on 6 subspecialties. During each rotation, students handle all the inpatient cases in the team under the supervision and direction of a clinical pharmacist (MSc in Clinical Pharmacy or PharmD). Students cover cases in outpatient clinics as well. Some of the activities done by students include solving a case for treatment-related problems (TRPs), patient counseling, therapeutic drug monitoring, IV preparation, checking dosage regimen, checking drug interactions and assessing safety and efficacy of medications
The clinical training of PharmD students (Pharmacy Practice 3, Clinical training-Internal Medicine 1 and 2, Clinical training-Pediatrics, Clinical training-Surgery, Clinical training-Ambulatory care, Clinical training-Psychiatric and Geriatrics, Clinical training-Gynecology) is patient-centered pharmaceutical training where students are in direct contact with patients and continuous interaction with other health care providers including nurses, lab technicians, and physicians.
The Pharmaceutical Field Training I course is a 16-week didactic training program over one academic semester. This course consists of 240 hours of externship in community pharmacy setting. Ideally, students should enroll in this course in the summer following the third professional year. Community pharmacies throughout Jordan are used as training sites for this actual pharmacy practice experience. At the end of this course, students are supposed to be familiar with the trade name and uses of most commonly prescribed medications in Jordan. Students are also supposed to know the drugstore and the manufacturers of these medications. Knowledge of the trade name, drug store, and manufacturers is essential for the practice of community pharmacist. The principal objective of this course is to familiarize students with the fundamentals of pharmacy practice in a community setting.
The Pharmaceutical Field Training II course is a 16-week didactic training program over one academic semester. This course consists of 240 hours of externship in a hospital pharmacy setting. Ideally, students should enroll in this course in the summer following the fourth professional year. Hospital pharmacies throughout Jordan are used as training sites for this actual pharmacy practice experience. Other available training sites include the “Drug Information Center” and the “Jordan Food and Drug Administration,” known as JFDA, or Pharmaceutical Industry Institutions. The principal objective of this course is to familiarize students with the fundamentals of pharmacy practice in a hospital setting. Successful completion of the course should lead to the outcomes.