Evidence Based Improvements in Clinical Pharmacy Clerkship Program in Undergraduate Pharmacy Education: The Evidence Based Improvement (EBI) Initiative

Although clinical pharmacy training in Pakistan is a novelty in the undergraduate pharmacy curriculum, it has significantly improved the practical knowledge of the undergraduate students with regards practice of pharmacy in health care settings. The implementation of the curriculum change was a major innovation but the possible negative implications were not contemplated at the time of execution and combined with a failure in regular review and assessment of the plan. This led to undesirable outcomes such as breaching of health care protocols and ethics by students, inadequate aptitude and poor clinical research skills. These shortcomings were analyzed and an evidence based improvement program known as the Evidence Based Improvement (EBI) initiative was designed containing structured modules to empower undergraduates in those areas. It was implemented by the authorities and has led to positive outcomes which render it very useful and this improvement program can serve as a guide to develop clinical pharmacy training programs in those countries where the practice of pharmacy is evolving