Novel Technologies for the Evaluation of Sterile Compounding Technique

Objective Current methods of evaluating sterile compounding technique rely on over-the-shoulder evaluation and subjective judgement of technique. The objective of this project is to develop an objective method of evaluating technique that is effective for education and competency testing. Methods A literature search and 2 panels of experts developed an objective rubric for evaluating aseptic technique. A collection of cameras was placed inside a laminar airflow hood to evaluate the technique of first-year student-pharmacists using an objective rubric; output from the cameras was used to evaluate technique errors classified as those impacting sterility and not affecting sterility. The objective evaluation results were compared to over-the-shoulder evaluation completed by teaching assistants as part of a sterile compounding class using a paired t-test. Results 27 students were recruited for this study and footage of 20 students was deemed acceptable for objective evaluation. A significantly higher amount of errors affecting sterility 75 vs. 19 (95% CI [1.88 to 3.72]; p < 0.001) and total errors 92 vs. 37 (95% CI [1.72-3.78]; p < 0.85) were found in the objective evaluation than the over-the-shoulder group. No difference was found between the groups in the evaluation of non-sterile errors 17 vs. 18 (95% CI [-0.59 to 0.49]; p = 0.39). Conclusion The objective evaluation method studied in this investigation shows promise in providing improved evaluation and education of sterile compounding technique due to the significantly higher amount of errors found. Though there are significant limitations to the results, the findings from this study question the reliability of standard over-the-shoulder evaluation and introduce new insights into accurately evaluating sterile compounding.Doctor of Pharmac