Year 1, Fall Semester
Required courses
Pharmacy Biochemistry is a one-semester (3-credit) course covering how atoms and molecules interact to produce life processes. Topics include, but are not limited to, biological synthesis of macromolecules, the chemistry of biological molecules, protein structure and function, enzyme mechanisms and kinetics, carbohydrate and lipid metabolic processes, nucleic acid chemistry and protein synthesis, cell communication, and biochemical regulation. Pharmacy Biochemistry is limited to Concordia School of Pharmacy students.
Cell and Molecular Fundamentals for Pharmacology students is a 1 credit, one-semester study of essential cell and molecular mechanisms underlying processes essential to life and instrumental in understanding disease and drug mechanisms. Topics will include, but are not limited to the cellular basis of living organisms, internal cell structure and cytoskeleton, endomembrane sorting and transport, protein contributions to cell and organelle function, cell communication mechanisms, cell cycle and apoptosis, structural organization of genomes, control of gene expression, and differentiation mechanisms facilitating tissue form and function. The course is designed specifically to complement PHAR 310 Pharmacy Biochemistry and to support School of Pharmacy (SOP) student progression into pharmacology.
This course will examine the structure and function of the human body. Exploration will begin at the level of individual molecules and progress through cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems, culminating in a view of the body as a whole. Along with PHAR 5110 Pharmacy Biochemistry and PHAR 5140 Pharmacy Immunology, Molecular Biology, and Microbiology, this course will provide the core knowledge in the biomedical sciences upon which future studies in the pharmaceutical sciences will be built.
Theory of physiochemical principles, thermodynamics and kinetics applicable to pharmaceutical systems, states of matter, with emphasis on aqueous solution chemistry, including solubility, acid-base systems, buffer systems, complexation and protein binding, along with principles of diffusion, drug release and dissolution processes, bioavailability, and pharmaceutical kinetics are included.
The course will cover the major concepts related to the structure and functioning of the U.S. health care system. Emphasis will be placed on analyzing issues associated with health care, personnel, and the organization of health care and its delivery, how it is financed and regulated. The course will also examine the provision of drugs and pharmacy services in the context of the health care enterprise.
Applied Patient Care I is the first of six integrated patient care skill development courses in the School of Pharmacy curriculum. It is a patient-centered course that uses simulated patient scenarios and case studies to build students foundational skills in drug information retrieval, patient interviewing, patient education, and critical thinking in the context of pharmacy’s multiple disciplines. (Includes patient care skills teaching laboratory.)
During the first semester of Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE-1), students are exposed to the roles and responsibilities of the professionally oriented pharmacist and the importance of effective communication between pharmacists, patients, and other health care providers. Off campus experiences will include a minimum of 40 hours each in a community and hospital setting. Legal, ethical, and practice issues in pharmacy are discussed during classroom and experiential activities. (Includes 2 weeks of pharmacy practice site-based learning.)
Year 1, Spring Semester
Required courses
This course introduces the pharmacy student to the fundamentals of microbiology, immunology and molecular biology. This course is designed to provide information and conceptual approaches needed for understanding the characteristics and activities of bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites, as well as the immunological responses of the host, and the molecular mechanisms of transfer of genetic information and drug resistance within pathogenic microbes. The primary goal is to assist each student to (i) acquire and integrate the knowledge necessary to make scientifically based judgments concerning immune and microbial diseases, and (ii) apply new findings gained by personal observation or by informed reading of the current literature.
Building upon the content of Pharmaceutics I, this course expands the knowledge base within the domain of drug delivery. Pharmaceutical dosage forms are introduced, along with their rationale for delivering optimal therapeutic benefit. A survey of the various sites available for drug administration, anatomic, physiologic and pathophysiologic considerations of those sites, and drug product requirements are covered. Oral, pulmonary, ocular, otic, buccal, sublingual, inserted, dermal, specialty, innovative dosage forms and device/drug product combinations, etc., are included. Students taking this course will develop competency in the principles upon which dosage forms act on or within the human body, thus fulfilling the University’s core curriculum goal of scientific literacy. (Includes patient care skills teaching laboratory.)
This course introduces the pharmacy student to the fundamentals of pharmacology and toxicology with more comprehensive overviews of autonomic and CNS pharmacology. The theme of xenobiotics is used to keep an initial focus on the broad spectrum of pharmacologic and toxicologic properties of external compounds (drugs and toxins) that affect the nervous system. This first course of three Pharmacology/Medicinal Chemistry courses will emphasize target organ effects, dose/response, and disposition so that student can fully understand basic pharmacologic principles of drug and xenobiotic handling, neuropharmacology and drugs which act on the Central nervous System, and neurotoxicology related topics including: substance abuse and treatment; and poison control support of emergency medicine, public health and preventive medicine frameworks.
Pharmacotherapy I: Self-Care is the first of five courses in which you will learn about pharmacotherapy, which is the treatment of disease through the use of drugs. This course will discuss the pathophysiology, epidemiology, clinical presentation, and treatment of common, self-limiting conditions. This course also covers triage and referral skills and wellness interventions. This course will give you the tools to help patients to select appropriate over-the-counter medications and dietary supplements.
Accurately performing pharmaceutical calculations is a critical component in providing patient care in every pharmacy practice environment. Consequently, pharmaceutical calculations are a vital part of any pharmacy curriculum. Although most pharmaceutical calculations are not “rocket science”, it is a topic that deserves attention because it requires virtually flawless accuracy. Before students are able to become optimally proficient at performing pharmaceutical calculations, they must understand approaches to pharmaceutical calculations that help minimize error and maximize accuracy. Their pre-course perceptions of pharmaceutical calculations must also be openly addressed so that these perceptions do not hinder the students’ focus on pharmaceutical calculations.
Applied Patient Care II is the second of six integrated patient care skill development courses in the School of Pharmacy curriculum. It is a patient-centered course that uses simulated patient scenarios and case studies to build students’ foundational skills in drug information retrieval, patient assessment, care plan development, patient education, leadership, medication safety, patient use of medications and medical goods and critical thinking in the context of pharmacy’s multiple disciplines. (Includes patient care skills teaching laboratory.)
During the second semester of Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE-2), students are exposed to the roles and responsibilities of the professionally oriented pharmacist and the importance of effective communication between pharmacists, patients, and other health care providers. Off campus experiences will include a minimum of 40 hours each in a community and hospital setting. Legal, ethical, and practice issues in pharmacy are discussed during classroom and experiential activities. (Includes 2 weeks of pharmacy practice site-based learning.)
Year 2, Fall Semester
Required courses
This course expands on previous teachings regarding absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion (ADME) a.k.a. absorption, distribution, elimination (ADE). Students will need to draw on their previous coursework to understand fundamental concepts in ADME/ADE and readily apply this knowledge. Further examination of pharmacokinetic (PK) models will assist students conceptual understanding of ADME/ADE. Using this conceptual framework, students will simultaneously develop and hone skills in PK dosing and therapeutic drug monitoring. Students should be prepared to not only acquire new knowledge but also readily apply their new and existing PK knowledge to optimize doses and solve complex PK dosing problems. To accomplish these tasks the course will move rapidly and students must contact instructors immediately with problems in keeping pace.
This course is a continuation of the non-sterile and sterile product preparation skill development from the Pharmaceutics II course and laboratory. Topics emphasized will include aseptic technique, incompatibilities, stability, cytotoxic preparations, and continued proficiency in common non-sterile preparations. (Includes patient care skills teaching laboratory.)
This course continues to expand the pharmacy students knowledge on the fundamentals of pharmacology and toxicology, re-emphasizing critical objectives with regard to drug Mechanism of Action, Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, and Elimination. Extensive review of drug structure, receptor binding, and Medicinal Chemistry will be a focal point for the course. The Medicinal Chemistry sections of this course will emphasize drug structure as a determinant of receptor binding, receptor activation, and receptor antagonism. The logic of drug design will be presented, with a focus on how variations to chemical structure can lead to changes in drug efficacy, as well as altered toxicity and bioavailability.
This required course is the second of five courses in which students learn about pharmacotherapy. It is designed to teach students the epidemiology, etiology, pathophysiology, clinical presentation, treatment options and evaluation of therapeutic outcomes of many renal, fluid and electrolyte, acid-base, and cardiovascular disorders. The course aims to develop pharmacists with the clinical knowledge, skills, and judgment to make clinical decisions based on sound therapeutic principles of drug and disease state management, treatment guidelines, and relevant individual patient factors. Ultimately the goal of this course is to empower students to be able to provide evidence based, safe, and appropriate medication use for patients with renal, fluid and electrolyte, acid-base, and cardiovascular disorders.
Medical Literature Evaluation I is the first in a 2-course series focusing on the use of medical literature for patient care. This course will focus on the critical evaluation of primary literature, including principles of biomedical statistics, research design, literature evaluation, and application to patient care.
This is the third of six integrated patient care skill development courses in the School of Pharmacy curriculum. It is a patient-centered course that uses simulated patient scenarios and case studies to build foundational skills in drug information retrieval, patient interviewing, patient education, and critical thinking in the context of multiple disciplines of pharmacy. The first two courses in this series focused on the specific direct patient care skills of gathering a medication list, providing patient education, conducting a comprehensive interview of a new patient, and providing a verbal care plan to a patient. This course continues to develop these skills by providing more opportunities to practice what has been learned using simulated patient and provider interactions. Students will learn new skills including follow-up assessments, physical assessment, and clinical documentation. The course will also continue to develop skills in drug information and health literacy while integrating with the didactic curriculum and the IPPE series. (Includes patient care skills teaching laboratory.)
During the third semester of Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE-3), students continue to explore and experience the roles and responsibilities of the professionally oriented pharmacist and the importance of effective communication between pharmacists, patients, and other health care providers. Off campus experiences will include 40 hours each in a community and hospital setting. Legal, ethical and practice issues in pharmacy are discussed during classroom and experiential activities. (Includes 2 weeks of pharmacy practice site-based learning.)
Year 2, Spring Semester
Required courses
This course continues to expand the pharmacy students knowledge on the fundamentals of pharmacology and toxicology, re-emphasizing critical objectives with regard to drug Mechanism of Action, Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, and Elimination. Extensive review of drug structure, receptor binding, and Medicinal Chemistry will be a focal point for the course. The Medicinal Chemistry sections of this course will emphasize drug structure as a determinant of receptor binding, receptor activation, and receptor antagonism. The students will also continue their drug-drug interaction project from the previous semester.
This course is a survey of topics in the social and behavioral sciences as applied to pharmacy. The goal of the course is to give students a better understanding of how social, psychological, and socio-cultural factors explain and relate to disease processes, patients and pharmacists orientation to the health care system, and patient-pharmacist encounters. Topics covered include (but are not limited to) the relationship between the mind and the body, the nature and experience of chronic illness, mental illness, substance use, patient counseling and communication, pharmacist-physician interaction, medication adherence, and medication errors.
Pharmacotherapy III is the third of five courses in which students will learn about the treatment of diseases through the use of medications. The course focuses on the core content areas of infectious diseases, endocrine disorders, and inflammatory disorders. Students will develop the skills needed to make evidence-based, patient-specific medication use recommendations relative to the core content areas.
Medical Literature Evaluation II is the second in a 2-course series focusing on the use of medical literature for patient care. This course will build upon primary literature evaluation skills gained in Medication Literature Evaluation I and the introduction to tertiary references, secondary databases, and evidence-based guidelines from previous courses. The course focuses on application of knowledge and skills in critiquing articles, leading journal clubs, and answering case-based drug information questions.
This is the fourth of six integrated patient care skill development courses in the School of Pharmacy curriculum. It is a patient-centered course that uses simulated patient scenarios and case studies to build foundational skills in drug information retrieval, patient interviewing, patient education, and critical thinking in the context of multiple disciplines of pharmacy. The first three courses in this series focused on the specific direct patient care skills of gathering a medication list, providing patient education, conducting a comprehensive interview of a new patient, providing a verbal care plan to a patient, completing a follow-up assessment, and documentation of patient encounters. These skills were taught and developed using material learned in the Pharmacotherapy series and self-care. Phar 472 continues to develop these skills by providing more opportunities to practice what has been learned using simulated patient and provider interactions. Phar 472 will also build upon these with more complicated patient cases and pharmacotherapy concepts. Students will learn new skills in provider communication and will have an opportunity to further develop documentation skills learned in Phar 470. The course will also continue to develop skills in drug information and health literacy while integrating with the didactic curriculum and the IPPE series. (Includes patient care skills teaching laboratory.)
The servant leadership philosophy/perspective focuses the leader on the needs of others for their benefit and connects nicely with the ethos of our profession and the mission of Concordia University Wisconsin. Though servant leadership outcomes are covered longitudinally through our curriculum, this course will provide a central point of focus for introducing, advancing and evaluating concepts related to the servant leadership outcomes. The course will focus on leadership development and its relation to meeting the needs of others and advancing the profession of pharmacy. It is believed that the preceding learning goals cannot be accomplished via passive learning through an experience that is primarily restricted to a classroom. As a result, the course has been designed to engage students in self-discovery and reflection through a combination of structured and unstructured experiences taking place in the lecture hall, lab setting and our community. This class will consist of three distinct, yet interrelated modules. Introduction to Servant Leadership in Pharmacy; Legislative Advocacy; Leading Change. (Includes patient care skills teaching laboratory.)
During the fourth semester of Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience (IPPE-4), students continue to explore and experience the roles and responsibilities of the professionally oriented pharmacist and the importance of effective communication between pharmacists, patients, and other health care providers. Off campus experiences will include 40 hours each in a community and hospital setting. Legal, ethical and practice issues in pharmacy, including professional development, are discussed during classroom and experiential activities. (Includes 2 weeks of pharmacy practice site-based learning.)
Year 3, Fall Semester
Required courses
The primary focus of this course is to explore the tension between law and ethics and their relationship to the practice of pharmacy. We will spend our time evaluating two broad questions: It’s ethical, but is it legal? It’s legal, but is it ethical? Pharmacy Law is composed of federal and state laws, rules, and regulations. Some of these laws are specific to the profession, while others relate indirectly to pharmacy, or they are general laws that apply to the entire population. The pharmacist is equally responsible for compliance with all of these laws, rules, and regulations, as well as policies governing pharmacy practice. In addition, the pharmacist is responsible for upholding certain standards of both personal and professional ethical conduct. These standards are successfully upheld through critical reflection. Ethics is reflective and critical: it does not simply attempt to codify our beliefs and opinions concerning moral issues and questions.
The course explores a series of management principles and techniques focusing on the anticipated responsibilities of the future pharmacist. Topics range from accounting and project management to strategy, human resources management, and marketing.
This required course is the fourth of five courses in which you learn about pharmacotherapy (the treatment of disease through the use of medications). Phar 550 is designed to teach students the pathophysiology, epidemiology, and treatment of certain oncologic, pulmonary, psychiatric, neurologic and pain disorders.
Phar 7750 Applied Patient Care V (2 credit hours) is the fifth of six integrated patient care skill development courses in the School of Pharmacy curriculum. It is a patient-centered course that uses simulated patient scenarios and case studies to build students’ foundational skills in drug information retrieval, patient interviewing, patient education, and critical thinking in the context of pharmacy's multiple disciplines. The first four courses in this series focused on the specific direct patient care skills of gathering a medication list, providing patient education, conducting a comprehensive interview of a new patient, providing a verbal care plan to a patient, patient follow-up, clinical documentation, and provider communication with much of the therapeutic content coming from Pharmacotherapy I-III. Phar 7750 continues to build on these skills while incorporating skills from the concurrent Pharmacotherapy IV course. It will also continue to develop students’ skills in drug information, cultural competence, and health literacy while integrating with the didactic curriculum and the IPPE series. Prerequisites for course include P3 Standing and concurrent registration in Pharmacotherapy IV or consent of instructor. (Includes patient care skills teaching laboratory.)
Elective courses
This course is designed to expose the student to dosage forms not seen in their previous required pharmaceutics compounding labs and to challenge students creative/analytical thinking through product creation and formulation development. An emphasis will be placed on quality assurance/quality control as well as product analysis. We will cover topics and create products unique to compounding pharmacy such as pediatric compounding, veterinary compounding, pain control, BHRT, cosmeceuticals, sterile compounding from non-sterile products and more. Each student will have the opportunity to create a lab and compound designed specifically to their interests. The goal of this course is to expand on the student's’ current knowledge of compounding pharmacy and to discover and create innovative ways to treat patients using compounding pharmacy skills and techniques.
Veterinary Pharmacy Practice is an elective course designed to give students the opportunity to learn the basics of veterinary pharmacotherapy. The course will provide as a foundation for clinical practice where pharmacists are increasingly asked to dispense medications for dogs, cats, and other common household animals. The course will cover commonly used veterinary medications as well as human medications commonly used in veterinary medicine.
In Spanish World of Pharmacy students have the opportunity to learn and experience pharmacy practice, education, and culture in Spain. During the study abroad trip, students will attend classes in both English (relating to the formation and practice of pharmacy in Spain), and in Spanish (relating to Spanish language and culture) at CEU Universidad San Pablo in Madrid. In addition to learning about pharmacy practice and culture students will be able to experience them first hand through selected pharmacy experiences such as visiting local pharmacies, hospitals, and pharmaceutical companies, and cultural experiences like taking a day trip to Toledo, touring the Prado museum, and attending a flamenco show.
This course will introduce basic techniques of modern biotechnology related to biological processes with emphasis on those salient to the realm of drug discovery and drug therapy. Applications to monoclonal antibody products, interferons, interleukins, vaccines, hematopoietic growth factors, and growth factors are included, along with gene knockout technology, in vivo fluorescent labeling, flow cytometry, and stem cells. Future prospects for utilization in organ replacement, gene therapy, and in utero cell repair are discussed.
This course is designed to use improvisational theater training exercises which have been adapted to health care to improve and strengthen communication and teamwork skills. Armed with strong teamwork and patient-centered communication skills, students who complete this course will be poised to improve clinical outcomes, chronic disease management, and patient satisfaction while avoiding serious medical errors associated with communication breakdown.
This course will focus on the clinical management of the “poisoned” patient. Students will be exposed to the clinical presentation and treatment of patients experiencing toxicity from medications and biologicals. This course will review and reinforce the student’s knowledge of the fundamentals of pharmacology and toxicology. The course will re-emphasizing critical objectives with regard to mechanism of action, absorption, distribution, metabolism and elimination in addition to chemical structure. Drug addiction pathophysiology and treatment will be presented.
This course is designed to familiarize the student with the identification, application, and evaluation of pharmaceutical products originating from natural sources. This will combine principles of basic science with pharmaceutical applications. Topics include: biodiversity and chemotaxonomy; biosynthesis; secondary metabolite-based drug development; social, legal, and harmful aspects of herbs and supplements; ethnopharmacology and cultural/traditional use of natural products. This course will provide students practical knowledge of the origins of medicines, so that they may better appreciate the complex world around them. The end goal is to engage students to learn in depth about ways nature is utilized to treat disease. This helps students to become more knowledgeable pharmacists and global citizens.
This once-weekly seminar series serves to introduce timely Infectious Diseases (ID) Pharmacotherapy topics to the student, and it will facilitate a more detailed discussion of select ID conditions. The role of the pharmacist in ID state management will be emphasized using an interactive Grand Rounds type format. Students will be asked to prepare in advance and will be expected come to seminar with analytical questions for the speaker. In addition to presentations by CUW SOP faculty members, local expert pharmacists will present in their areas of expertise. Students will be assessed based upon participation and targeted assignments that correlate with select seminar presentations. Students will also complete a service project as part of this elective course.
Ambulatory care is a growing aspect of pharmacy practice. Pharmacy graduates are given the clinical knowledge to manage chronic conditions and to assess patients with complex medication regimens through skills gained in clinical courses. This course will help students to further develop their clinical problem-solving skills and introduce the practice management skills needed to develop and maintain and ambulatory care practice.
The Specialty Pharmacy Practice Elective course aims to prepare students for future interactions with the practice of specialty pharmacy. Our focus will center on three areas of this practice: 1. The structure of specialty pharmacy and the development of a referral based practice. 2. The construction of effective clinical arguments to support access to specialty pharmacy care. 3. Current events and the impact of future medication pipelines and the continued evolution of the specialty pharmacy model. This course will touch on multiple clinical areas such as Oncology, Multiple Sclerosis, HIV, Hepatitis C, Fertility, and Cholesterol Management and their impact in the specialty pharmacy arena. We will utilize a mix of lecture, simulation activities, student presentations, and clinical documentation activities to help prepare you for pharmacy careers directly within or outside this unique and rapidly growing segment of pharmacy practice.
In Medical Spanish for Pharmacists, students continue to explore and experience the roles and responsibilities of the professionally oriented pharmacist and the importance of effective communication between pharmacists and patients. This course aims to develop students to be able to provide patient education, and obtain a medication list, in Spanish while also developing students’ skills in cultural competency. One off-campus experience, a cultural service learning activity, will include a 4 hour volunteering experience in the community. Students will be required to speak, listen, and write in Spanish. A significant portion of the lectures will be taught in Spanish.
During the elective semesters of the experiential education curriculum, students will continue to explore and experience the roles and responsibilities of a professional pharmacist. Students will participate in the practice of pharmacy with pharmacists, patients, and other health care providers and will apply knowledge obtained in the required curriculum. The course will consist of longitudinal off-campus rotation experiences in a variety of pharmacy practices, as well as on-campus discussions.
Also often referred to as independent study, a student and faculty pair submit a learning plan for self-directed, small group learning throughout the semester. Typical load is 45 hours of effort per credit. Requires consent instructor and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. For more information, contact Dr. Mike Brown at michael.brown@cuw.edu
Year 3, Spring Semester
Required courses
Public Health Microbiology describes the methods that industrialized countries use to ensure the safety of their populations from infectious disease. Topics covered include water and wastewater treatment, food microbiology, vaccines, sexually transmitted diseases, biostatistics, and epidemiology.
In Spanish World of Pharmacy students have the opportunity to learn and experience pharmacy practice, education, and culture in Spain. During the study abroad trip, students will attend classes in both English (relating to the formation and practice of pharmacy in Spain), and in Spanish (relating to Spanish language and culture) at CEU Universidad San Pablo in Madrid. In addition to learning about pharmacy practice and culture students will be able to experience them first hand through selected pharmacy experiences such as visiting local pharmacies, hospitals, and pharmaceutical companies, and cultural experiences like taking a day trip to Toledo, touring the Prado museum, and attending a flamenco show.
Driven by advances in genomics technology and the resultant increased capacity to understand an individual’s genetic makeup, the emerging field of pharmacogenomics is increasingly informing clinical therapeutics and future drug design. This course is designed to provide students with an improved understanding of the complexities in identifying clinically significant genetic variation to predict the right choice and dose of medications for an individualized approach to medicine. Toward this end, the course will examine genetic principles and genomic technologies facilitating pharmacogenetic advances. Students will advance their knowledge of specific genetic principles inherent to non-disease states, disease states, ethnicity, and other factors known to impact drug response and individual patient outcomes. As the course advances, students will be guided to apply this knowledge to pharmacy practice through readings from the current literature, design of practice plans, and other relevant activities that will lead to an advanced understanding of how genetic variation influences pharmacologic principles, e.g. dose-response relationships and metabolism, and diseases including cardiovascular, CNS, hematologic, and immune systems as well as cancer. Consideration of the limitations of pharmacogenomics and ethical issues will also provide a complete perspective of the current and future impact of this important field.
This course is meant to provide additional opportunities for pharmacy students to develop skills and knowledge in providing pharmaceutical care to underserved patients. Health care professionals who have a limited understanding of caring for patients facing economic, cultural, geographic or linguistic barriers may carry negative attitudes and stereotypes toward those vulnerable populations. It is vital to teach students how to interact with diverse patients effectively, as well as appreciate the social, interpersonal, and individual differences that can influence how patients use medications to treat acute and chronic illnesses.
This course provides an introduction to concepts and topics related to the care of a critically ill patient. Weekly lecture topics include the pathophysiology and management of selected diseases affecting major organ systems and requiring intensive care therapy. (This course is lecture based and does not include the journal club in the second hour.)
This course is designed to enhance and expand student’s knowledge base, empathy, and ability to effectively work with people with diabetes through hands on learning and personal experience with the cornerstones of Diabetes Management. The class approach will have each student participate in the management of diabetes as a patient. Student activities will include: attending education classes on the basics of diabetes care, self-recording various aspects of their daily lifestyle including food and exercise log, daily intake of “placebo” medications, blood glucose monitoring, and injection of placebo insulin (injections are 2 weeks of the class with the option of wearing a placebo insulin pump). Students will also get a firsthand experience of motivational interview and goal setting to make changes as if they were the person with diabetes. This course matches the Concordia mission and pharmacy curricular goal to develop student pharmacists in mind and spirit to provide value-based patient centered care for service to the world.
Medical literature evaluation in clinical settings and practitioner-driven journal clubs will be part of many APPE rotations and practice expectations as a pharmacist. Phar 8290 Medical Literature Journal Club is an elective course designed to give students the opportunity to develop their medical literature evaluation skills in a journal club setting. Advanced beyond evaluation of literature in Medical Literature Evaluation I and II, Medical Literature Journal Club puts students in an independent role of lead presenter of journal club articles with their peer P3 students. Also beyond Medical Literature I and II, students serve a role as journal club facilitator for P2 students as part of the P2 students’ introductory journal club experiences in Medical Literature Evaluation II. The course will also develop students’ skills identifying which articles are most germane to their upcoming practice and warrant evaluation, realizing that the volume of literature in practice exceeds that which can be read and necessitates prioritization. Finally, the course introduces students to grand rounds and other in-service presentations and gives them the chance to retrieve, analyze, and apply the literature during the development and delivery of a grand rounds presentation.
Oncology Seminar is a seminar-based course that will provide an overview of the unique aspects of oncology pharmacy practice. Students will also gain experience in providing oncology care through completion of a longitudinal educational project. Students will learn about the complex issues facing patients with cancer and gain insight into providing care as an oncology pharmacy specialist.
This course builds on concepts and topics from required coursework related to the care of the elderly patient. Expert guest lecturers, a broad variety of topics, and active learning techniques such as small group discussion, case evaluations, and simulation will be utilized to enhance the learning experience. The course will address general principles of aging and geriatric assessment skills, pharmacotherapy of selected disease states and syndromes common in the senior population, as well as other pertinent issues related to geriatric care. Additionally, students will complete a project in which course content and skills will be applied to patients in the community.
This elective course serves to build upon mental health knowledge learned in Pharmacotherapy IV (Phar 7540) and to develop an even broader knowledge base of psychiatric and neurologic disease states. Students will learn to apply psychopharmacologic and therapeutic management strategies to treat these disorders through the use of interactive patient cases and clinical scenarios. Other methods of teaching and learning (videos, literature evaluation, patient counseling, expert panels, etc.) may also be used to illustrate key points and present material. Prerequisite: P3 in good academic standing with passing or remediation of Pharmacotherapy I-IV & Pharmacology I-III.
Women's Health Issues in Pharmacy Practice provides an overview of diseases and health issues affecting women across their lifespan through the female patient's perspective. Women's advocacy activities will include female-centered community service. Students will learn how to provide female patients individualized medication therapy to fit her unique medical needs while balancing psychosocial influences of her everyday life.
This course is designed to enhance and expand students knowledge base in cardiology topics. This course will build upon the knowledge base obtained in pharmacotherapy and medical literature evaluation courses. Student will utilize literature evaluation skills to prepare a formulary review of a pipeline drug, perform weekly journal club preparation, prepare an abstract for a potential research protocol, and write a drug information question. Weekly lectures will focus on unique cardiology conditions that are not covered in depth in the core curriculum. In addition, students will be learning the basics of electrocardiogram interpretation through weekly study.
During the elective semesters of the experiential education curriculum, students will continue to explore and experience the roles and responsibilities of a professional pharmacist. Students will participate in the practice of pharmacy with pharmacists, patients, and other health care providers and will apply knowledge obtained in the required curriculum. The course will consist of longitudinal off-campus rotation experiences in a variety of pharmacy practices, as well as on-campus discussions.
This course is intended to be an overview of the healthy, acutely ill, and chronic - complex pediatric patient. A focus of this course will be the preventative and supporting pharmaceutical therapies used in managing these types of patients. The approach taken will be by age group and discuss pharmaceutical management in both ambulatory and inpatient settings. Age groups covered will include fetal, preterm, term infant, toddlers, preschool, school age, and teenage.
This course provides brief lectures on the purification and spectral characterization of pharmacologically important molecules. The majority of the class is not taught in the classroom, but consists of lab work to be done using analytical instrumentation – especially NMR, but also IR, MS and HPLC. Weekly lab exercises are to be performed, and at the end of the semester the students provide a report that summarizes their experiments and results. Students will pursue a hands-on project of their choice – characterizing drug impurities during manufacturing, API or precursor integrity in various steps in the pharmaceutical supply chain, natural products from Lake Michigan or the Amazon rainforest (Peru), and pollutants or poisons identified by regional agencies (poison control; EPA). Students will be encouraged to think of projects relevant to their interests (ex. comparing generic vs. name brand drugs; drugs at or past their expirations dates). Completion of the course makes students eligible for various paid summer internships.
This course provides an introduction to concepts and topics related to the care of a critically ill patient. Weekly lecture topics include the pathophysiology and management of selected diseases affecting major organ systems and requiring intensive care therapy. The critical care journal club focuses on the review of primary literature related to critical care topics covered in the lecture hour. (This course registration includes both the lecture and the journal club.)
Also often referred to as independent study, a student and faculty pair submit a learning plan for self-directed, small group learning throughout the semester. Typical load is 45 hours of effort per credit. Requires consent instructor and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. For more information, contact Dr. Mike Brown at michael.brown@cuw.edu
Year 3, Summer Semester
Elective courses
In Spanish World of Pharmacy students have the opportunity to learn and experience pharmacy practice, education, and culture in Spain. During the study abroad trip, students will attend classes in both English (relating to the formation and practice of pharmacy in Spain), and in Spanish (relating to Spanish language and culture) at CEU Universidad San Pablo in Madrid. In addition to learning about pharmacy practice and culture students will be able to experience them first hand through selected pharmacy experiences such as visiting local pharmacies, hospitals, and pharmaceutical companies, and cultural experiences like taking a day trip to Toledo, touring the Prado museum, and attending a flamenco show.
Year 4, Semester
All students must have a minimum of 10 professional elective course credits in the Doctor of Pharmacy program and may have more if desired. Students must take at least 7 APPEs: 4 required APPEs and 3 elective APPEs. A fourth elective APPE in the P4 year of the program is an option.
Required courses
During the required Community Pharmacy APPE, pharmacy students under the supervision of a Clinical Instructor will gain experience in community pharmacy practice including, but not limited to, dispensing procedures, pharmacy law, practice management, and OTC pharmacotherapy assessment. The student will perform medication list retrieval, patient education, clinical documentation, and other patient care skills as appropriate for their rotation site. The student will develop a philosophy of community pharmacy practice regarding the role of the pharmacist as a member of the health care team. (Full-time practice site-based learning.)
The acute care medicine APPE rotation is a 6 week experiential rotation where the students’ learning will focus on applying didactic coursework and patient care skills to the care of acutely ill, hospitalized patients. Students will actively participate in the delivery of patient care by assuming their role in an interdisciplinary health care team. (Full-time practice site-based learning.)
During the required Hospital/Health System Pharmacy APPE, pharmacy students under the supervision of a Clinical Instructor will gain experience in a hospital's central pharmacy and distributive processes. Students will gain skill and experience in hospital pharmacy practice including, but not limited to, the medication use process, automation/computerization, sterile and non-sterile product preparation, quality assurance and medication safety, practice management, and interdisciplinary communication. The student will prepare and process medication orders, identify and resolve drug therapy problems, provide patient care, and participate in hospital pharmacy operations as appropriate for their rotation site. The student will develop a philosophy of hospital/health system pharmacy practice regarding the role of the pharmacist as a member of the health care team. (Full-time practice site-based learning.)
The ambulatory care APPE rotation occurs in a variety of practice settings, including, but not limited to, community retail pharmacies, hospital outpatient pharmacies, clinics and physician offices. During this experience, students’ learning will focus on applying didactic coursework and patient care skills to the care of ambulatory patients. Students will be active participants on the interdisciplinary team and engage in activities involving the delivery of quality, comprehensive pharmaceutical care, including clinical care conferences, patient education and interviewing, drug therapy monitoring, physical assessments, and drug information questions. The student will actively participate in the health care decision-making process, especially as it pertains to drug therapy. (Full-time practice site-based learning.)
This experiential curriculum offers ample opportunities for students to customize and specialize their rotation experiences in the year of APPEs. Students may pick from a variety of elective opportunities, including advanced ambulatory care, management, drug information, government, academia, advanced internal medicine, intensive care, emergency medicine, poison center, industry, and international rotations just to name a few. (Full-time practice site-based learning.)