Pharmacy Knowledge ‘fits the way students learn today’

After two years in development, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has launched Pharmacy Knowledge — a digital learning platform for pharmacy schools, featuring the full content from 58 core pharmacy textbooks alongside new, specially commissioned learning material.

The content on Pharmacy Knowledge, which includes Essentials of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Dale and Appelbe’s Pharmacy and Medicines Law and Drugs in Use, is provided in a “mix and match” format — bringing together material from several sources under a wide range of subject headings.

Using the platform, tutors can create unique reading lists for their students, tailored to their institution’s MPharm course design. Included with each piece of content is a set of multiple-choice questions, the results of which can be viewed by the tutor.

Students are also able to create their own reading lists which incorporate the tutor’s choices as well as any material the student chooses to add.

Mark Pollard, associate publisher at The Pharmaceutical Journal, said the platform was borne from a desire to share the RPS’s educational books in a way that aligns with how students to prefer to learn.

“We have a programme of textbooks, but — because of the way the textbook market is going overall — it was sometimes difficult to justify doing new editions.

“We wanted to find a new way that better fitted the way that students learn today, which is much more digitally based. It also allows us to update our content in a regular and reliable form.”

The platform, like Medicines Complete, is purchased on an annual subscription basis.

“This is a significant change to purchasing models,” said Pollard. ”It’s about an institution buying a subscription to the entire content, rather than students having to buy their own textbooks.

“I think it could be a big advantage to a student, going to an institution that has subscribed [instead of] a university that expects them to buy the books themselves.”

Tony Scully, publisher of The Pharmaceutical Journal, said that Pharmacy Knowledge “will provide a new learning environment in which pharmacy students can access timely education content designed to reflect the challenges faced by practising pharmacists in any setting — it presents a future-facing approach to learning and development”.

Paul Bennett, chief executive of the RPS, said: “Providing access to respected clinical text through this platform is an important part of what the RPS sees as its role as a leadership body — and it is part of the journey we are on to achieve our vision of becoming the world leader in the safe and effective use of medicines.”