Preceptor Pearl: Planning for an IPPE or APPE Rotation

I received my pharmacy degree before Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experience

(IPPE)/Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE) rotations existed, when post-graduate internships were the final proving ground prior to licensure. Back in 1981, the 12-month post-graduate internship often treated students like an additional, inexpensive employee in almost every practice setting. Back then, I was often trained by other technicians rather than the pharmacist. Today, IPPE and APPE rotations prepare pharmacy students for practice during the course of their education, under the supervision of pharmacist preceptors. One key component of providing an effective, individualized pharmacy practice experience that I have adopted is maximizing interactions with my students before they ever set foot on site. Once the student begins his or her rotation, I take steps to continue to ensure the student is having a personalized experience.

I have designed my onboarding process to rapidly establish students as fully functioning members of our patient care team. To accomplish this, I’ve modified recommendations from the Preceptor’s Handbook for Pharmacists, Third Edition. The Office of Experiential Education at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) School of Pharmacy takes great care in guiding students into each rotation and as a preceptor, it is my responsibility to do the same.

When I receive the student’s first email introduction two or three weeks before the first day of his or her rotation, I take great care to read and understand the goals described by the student. I make sure I respond to the student within 24 hours, so the student knows I read and understood his/her background and goals. I challenge the student to think about my practice setting and ask him/her to come prepared on the first day with some additional personal goals for the rotation, as well ideas for the required projects based on the IPPE and APPE manuals. I write a follow-up email a week before the rotation begins to remind the student to keep thinking about his/her goals. I send a final email two or three days prior to the start of the rotation to give the student specific instructions for the first day.

Before my student arrives on the first day, I read his/her MyCred information. MyCred gives me detailed information about the student’s educational and social background, as well as professional goals. On that first day of rotation, I allow for an hour or two to sit down with the student and create an individualized plan, making use of the MyCred information. Together, we commit the 10-week or 6-week plan on paper. I then introduce the student to all providers and staff he or she will be engaged with during the rotation. We also establish the topics for all written activities and the dates for their completion.

I make every effort throughout the rotation to make sure it is as personal to the student as possible. Each morning, we take a few minutes to review the previous day’s activities and talk about positive experiences and challenges. At least weekly, I read the student’s Pharmacy Student Activity Tracker (PSAT) entries (Field Encounters) that are posted in CORE. Since my students work closely with other providers and staff, these encounters help me monitor the student’s experiences and assure all goals are on track. I enjoy watching the evolution of the student’s written reports from the beginning to the end of the rotation, including an immense growth in his/her writing skills.

Experiential rotations have evolved over history to become an opportunity for a student to function as a pharmacist with the comfort of an engaged guide. Student preparation is well planned and executed by the Office of Experiential Education and we need to ensure that, as preceptors, we plan with great care and intentionality for each student. I want every encounter the student experiences to give him/her the confidence of knowing he/she has the clinical knowledge to connect the dots between didactic education and the real patients encountered in practice. As preceptors, we are the first leg of practice for the IPPE students and last leg for the APPE students. Together, we mold the pharmacists of the future and redefine how we care for patients.

NOTE:

To access your student's Pharmacy Student Activity Tracker (PSAT) entries, log in to CORE ELMS (www.rxpreceptor.com). Click Field Encounters on the left-hand navigation panel. Front there, you can see the encounters your student has entered. You can utilize the filters at the top of the page to identify specific students or encounters by rotation type, if you offer more than one. If you have questions on how to utilize this functionality, please contact a member of the Office of Experiential Education at pharmacyEE@mcw.edu.