Pharmacy students' perceptions about the need for multicultural education

This study examined pharmacy students' perceptions for the need for multicultural education and its relevance to pharmacy practice. The specific objectives were: (i) to assess pharmacy students' perceptions of the importance of learning about health beliefs and behaviors of ethnic-minority groups; (ii) to determine pharmacy students' opinions about the mechanism(s) in which such cultural information should be conveyed; and (iii) to evaluate if pharmacy students' perceptions differed based on their demographics. One hundred thirty-eight first-professional year pharmacy students responded to a questionnaire administered during a Pharmacy Administration course. Pharmacy students believed it was important for them to learn information regarding the health beliefs and behaviors of different ethnic groups through didactic and experiential training. However, they apparently could not make the association between having this knowledge and positively impacting patient outcomes. Pharmacy students' perceptions differed based on gender and ethnic background.