PRECEPTOR EDUCATION/TRAINING
The Joint Committee on Internship Programs has approved the course The Community Pharmacist Preceptor Education Program to meet the Texas State Board of Pharmacy's preceptor education and training requirement. This course was developed jointly by APhA and NACDS and can be accessed at http://www.nacdsfoundation.org/. After completing the assessment, participants will received 3.0 contact hours of continuing education credit (0.3 CEUs).

2007 PRECEPTOR ORIENTATION AND TRAINING CONFERENCE (August 2006)
25th anniversary conference!
Saturday, August 18
Stagecoach Inn, Salado

PRACTITIONER-FACULTY RECERTIFICATION (July 2006)
If you have not completed the on-line survey to recertify your practitioner-faculty status with The University of Texas College of Pharmacy, please do so immediately!  Send your name and Texas pharmacist licensure number to Jennifer Ridings-Myhra at myhraj@mail.utexas.edu and let her know that you need to recertify.

If you have requested library on-line privileges through UT, it is necessary to recertify in order to maintain this privilege.

STUDENT PORTFOLIOS (July 2005)
In addition to satisfactory student evaluations and examination scores, student pharmacist interns must develop and maintain a longitudinal portfolio over the course of their P4 (final year) rotations. The portfolio provides a methodology to support the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) standards regarding the use of outcomes to assess achievement of professional competencies, and also serves as a practical method to engage the student as an active, self-directed, life-long learner. Specifically, the portfolio:

 - enables the intern to be actively involved in his/her learning experiences;
 - assists both the preceptor and intern in selecting learning activities demonstrating ongoing development of desirable practitioner skills across rotations; and
 - supports the assembly of demonstrable outcomes for the intern to use when initially interviewing for a practice position or residency.

The content expectations for the portfolio are outlined in the document "P4 Student Pharmacist Intern Portfolio Content Requirements".

All internship activities required for a particular rotation must be documented. The item or activity (e.g., journal club) and the evaluation tool for that item should be kept together in the portfolio with other information for that particular rotation. Examples of evaluation tools for informal/formal case presentations, inservice, and journal club presentations are provided should the practice site not use a specific evaluation tool.

A copy of the completed Intern Evaluation Form (IEF) for each rotation must also be included, and should be used by both the preceptor and intern at each subsequent rotation to enhance identified strengths and focus on skills needing further development. A copy of the Internship Hour Sheet must also be inserted.

Students will keep the portfolio in a binder with one identified tab for each rotation. Information for each rotation, both required and optional, will be compiled under the tab for the first, second, third, etc. rotation. A curriculum vita or resume, along with any special projects completed in the P1-P3 years that the student wishes to include, should precede the documentation of internship activities.

Additionally, a copy of the ACPE Professional Outcomes is included with a designated preceptor and student section for longitudinal assessment. At the END of each rotation, preceptors will rate students, and students will self-assess. This assessment is for the edification of the student and preceptor only and will not be used as a method for passing or failing the student. The official evaluation tool for each rotation remains the Intern Evaluation Form. Please consult the course syllabus, p. B10, "Reminder", for additional information on the requirements for a passing grade.

Finally, a checklist is included which requires the student and preceptor to verify that items needed for each rotation are included in the portfolio. It is the student's ultimate responsibility to ensure that the portfolio is complete. However, we ask that the preceptor assist the student during this introductory phase so that both parties may become better acquainted with this process.

If you have questions regarding the portfolio, please contact your regional director:

General Portfolio Requirements for Student Pharmacist Interns

Interns must:

- maintain the format of the portfolio per the instructions outlined in this document.
- ensure that the portfolio contains all required items for each rotation.
- provide portfolio accessibility to each preceptor on a schedule to be determined by the preceptor and student mutually at the beginning of the rotation.
- complete the longitudinal ACPE competency assessment after each rotation.
- sign the portfolio checklist ensuring that you and the preceptor have reviewed the portfolio.
- submit the portfolio to the regional internship personnel for review on a schedule to be determined within each region.

Students, please be aware that this is just the start of documentation you will need to maintain throughout your professional life in support of continuing professional development (CPD). CPD is a concept that is quickly gaining ground within accreditation, licensure, and professional organizations as a method by which pharmacists will need to document professional development and growth over the course of their careers. Therefore, keep your P4 portfolio as the start of this activity!

General Portfolio Expectations for Practitioner Faculty (Preceptors)

Practitioner Faculty should:
- review the intern portfolio at the beginning of the rotation, noting student strengths and areas needing further development.
- note rotation-specific requirements for each rotation on the document "Portfolio Content Requirements", and ensure that the student can meet these requirements. Please be aware that your regional internship personnel may contact you with region-specific information in regards to meeting these requirements.
- complete and sign, along with the student, the portfolio checklist at the end of the rotation.
- complete the preceptor assessment portion of the ACPE longitudinal assessment at the end of the rotation.
- ensure that the Intern Evaluation Form is completed and signed at the end of the rotation.

Thank you for your assistance with this important activity!

Formal Presentation Evaluation Form
Summary of Informal Case Presentations
Journal Club Presentation Evaluation Form
Portfolio Checklist
SOAP Note Evaluation Form

ELECTRONIC LIBRARIES ACCESS (rev. September 2006)
If you would like to request electronic libraries access, please follow these instructions:

In order to be granted UT on-line library privileges, you must have a UT EID. If you already know your UT EID, please provide it along with:
- birth date
- e-mail
- daytime phone number
when you request access.

If you do not know your UT EID, do not have a UT EID, or simply do not know whether or not you have one, visit the UT EID Self-Service Tools page There you will find links for determining your existing UT EID or creating a new one ("Find My UT EID" or "Get a UT EID" as the case may be). Follow the instructions to procure your UT EID, then supply it along with the additional requested information listed above when you request library access.

If you have any problems with the above procedures, please contact one of the College of Pharmacy's official department contacts: Janice Sutton / (512) 471-1828 or Nicole Toomey / (512) 471-1828.

Send all of the requested information to Assistant Dean Jennifer Myhra at myhraj@mail.utexas.edu.

Thanks for your continued involvement with our program.

In Other News:

A list of existing preceptor education programs offered through the Joint Committee on Internship Programs, a consortium of Texas pharmacy internship directors, can be found at:
http://www.tsbp.state.tx.us/infocist/index.htm scroll down to the document "Preceptor CE Information.” This will download as a PDF file.

For those persons or groups interested in offering ACPE-approved preceptor specific education and training, guidelines may be found at: http://www.tsbp.state.tx.us/infocist/index.htm
scroll down to the document "Information for Potential Providers of Preceptors Education and Training Programs". This will download as a PDF file.