PM4PY3: Clinical Therapeutics 5

Module code: PM4PY3

Module provider: Pharmacy; School of Chemistry, Food and Pharmacy

Credits: 20

Level: Level 4 (Undergraduate Masters)

When you'll be taught: Semester 1

Module convenor: Mrs Victoria Everett, email: v.m.kleanthous@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s): BEFORE TAKING THIS MODULE YOU MUST TAKE PM3PY1 AND TAKE PM3PY2 AND TAKE PM3PY3 (Compulsory)

Co-requisite module(s): IN THE SAME YEAR AS TAKING THIS MODULE YOU MUST TAKE PM4PY1 AND TAKE PM4PY2 (Compulsory)

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2024/5

Available to visiting students: No

Talis reading list: Yes

Last updated: 12 September 2024

Overview

Module aims and purpose

This module focuses on the integration of knowledge and skills from previous years’ modules, with a particular focus on the therapeutics and prescribing in various patient groups and conditions within primary and secondary care. This module will also revisit core clinical conditions from previous years but with added complexity in preparation for the Foundation training year assessment. Students will consider a range of patient groups and the complications and pharmaceutical care considerations associated with each whilst also understanding the risks that are involved in patient care. Students will maintain their technical and clinical skills associated with each of the topics covered and will integrate any relevant changes in legal and clinical guidance into their practice.   

Aims 

This module aims to provide students with the opportunity to develop their clinical knowledge and prescribing skills within areas relevant to primary and secondary care. To achieve this, topics will be taught using an appropriate range of teaching activities to allow integration of the disciplines that link to the therapeutic topics of the module. 

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. Apply the principles of person-centred pharmaceutical care and the role of the broader. healthcare team to more complex patient scenarios leading to a decision to prescribe while respecting diversity and cultural differences
2. Interpret and use clinical guidance to support prescribing decisions and use reliable sources for information retrieval
3. Critically evaluate the evidence supporting the clinical guidance for these conditions and your prescribing decisions by ensuring people are treated as equals, with dignity and respect
4. Critically appraise the theory behind the diagnostics, pharmacology and physicochemical properties of drugs to justify the management of these patients and disease groups.
5. Actively take part in the management of risks and consider the impacts on people by using tools and techniques to avoid medication errors associated with prescribing, supply and administration.

Module content

This module focusses on the therapeutics and prescribing of various patient groups and conditions. An appropriate range of lectures, workshops, and guided individual study will be used to achieve the learning outcomes and also integrate with those of previous modules, helping to contextualise relevance to the practice of pharmacy. The students will also undertake interprofessional education with other health professional students which will help improve both formal and informal communication. 

Content that will be covered includes prescribing and medicines use in pregnancy and breastfeeding, drug use and pharmaceutical care considerations in paediatrics, care of the elderly and multi-organ disease, medication safety, liver and renal disease, palliative care and core clinical conditions from previous years in preparation for the Foundation training year assessment (for example diabetes, heart and respiratory disease). During teaching students will be taught to consider sustainability in their medicine and device choices whilst recognising that medicines optimisation is also an important sustainability tool that complements patient care. Equally students will improve on their clinical decision-making skills by incorporating concepts of health inequalities.

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

The learning outcomes will be met through a mixture of lectures, workshops, directed private study, and self-directed learning. Some of the workshops will utilise a case-based learning-like approach: activities will adopt characteristics of workshops where students will engage in formative activities e.g., group work, in-class discussion. Appropriate supplementary information and reading lists will be provided to enable students to improve their own learning skills. 

Study hours

At least 50 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 50% to pass this module.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three working days;
• the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three working days of the deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

Formative assessment is largely based on coursework and self-directed assessment and will reinforce each of the learning outcomes of the module. These will be staff, peer, or self- assessed and will include written and online assignments. These assessments will provide students with feedback on their achievement of the learning outcomes and prepare them for the summative assessments. 

Reassessment

Additional costs