The Pharmacy Game Newsletter

The pandemic situation all over the world affects different areas of everyday life, including (higher) education. As the Pharmacy Game is used to train students’ practical-skills like communication, it requires face-to-face contact. It is therefore a challenge to run the game under current circumstances. Each university approached this challenge differently and moved towards online teaching of their Pharmacy Game.

In Groningen the theoretical part will be taught completely online and for the practical days adequately sized rooms for simulated pharmacies will be used in combination with hygienic measures, so that the students can be present in the simulated pharmacy to best experience socialization, qualification and personal development. In Utrecht the game was played this summer, physically in an adapted way (4 students per pharmacy, the rest via MS Teams using a rotation schedule). Their course then lasted 3 weeks, for students whose course was abruptly canceled last March. In Belgium, the game will be run in a split way, with 4 students from each simulation pharmacy coming to the campus and the other students participating from home. This schedule is switched every day, so all students will have at least three days on campus with live experience. These small groups are called “bubbles” and students are instructed only to interact with that particular bubble and avoid further contacts. In Nottingham they are reviewing the learning outcomes and redesigning the framework with different scenarios -creating avatars that can appear more often and need to be followed through the year, including simple and complex patient cases. Possible concerns are additional engagement of work force management that might imply increase costs. Currently, the 4 game blocs are reduced to 3. Australia already has some experience from the previous year with utilization of additional online tools during the game, like Microsoft Teams. This September the game is run completely online. An adjustment was made in the working hours of the pharmacies, which were reduced from 8 to 6. The script days were also reduced to 12 instead of 13. Every team had several I-Pads and uses Microsoft Teams. During the game they measure the stress level of the students. They are less concerned about the lack of socialization while running the game online, because there was active online participation. Engaging activities were also in force such as: who gives the first answer, active live chat etc. Running the game online allowed inclusion of students from all parts of the country and abroad. In Bath they are running the game using a blended approach of face to face and online teaching but keeping the 2 week structure of the game the same as previous years. Students who are able to come to campus can do so and work in their ‘pharmacy’, however provisions have been made for those who are unable to do so. Like Australia, they are also using Microsoft Teams and OneNote as platforms for students to collaborate in real time and create their pharmacy identity. The students will continue to undertake consultations with ‘patients’ but these will be done either as telephone or virtual consultations. In Lithuania the game started September, 21st and will be played until October 12th, face-to-face. The students work in shifts. The involvement of the students that were planned to play actors appear to be an issue, and this role still remains in the hands of the teaching staff. New in this game is the implementation of an e-pharmacy, where students may give pharmaceutical care to their patients online, before dispensing the medicine. Additional cases were also added, such as angry parents complaining for different advice in the previous shift.