A survey of advanced community pharmacy practice experiences in the final year of the PharmD curriculum at US colleges and schools of pharmacy

Objective. To assess the current state of advanced pharmacy practice experiences ( APPE) in the community setting in US PharmD programs accredited under Standards 2000. Methods. Two surveys were conducted to assess the current state of core advanced pharmacy practice experiences in the community setting in US PharmD programs accredited under Standards 2000. Results. Two surveys were conducted of 45 experiential program directors and 227 preceptors of community pharmacy experiences. A variety of quality assurance mechanisms were used to review sites and preceptors, including student evaluations, preceptor interviews, and the use of review councils. The majority of programs had a 1: 1 preceptor- to- student ratio. The criteria used to identify preceptors and sites for the core community APPE were diverse. Required orientation/ training sessions for preceptors were reported by 50% of experiential directors. Twenty percent of experiential directors indicated that interactions with preceptors focused on unprofessional student conduct some of the time. Conclusions. Experiential directors have done well to identify preceptors and practice sites that offer students the ability to engage in activities consistent with achieving the competencies outlined in the standards, but continued quality improvement is needed.