Assessment of center for the advancement of pharmaceutical education (CAPE) outcomes in a capstone course of an accelerated pharmacy program

• Published in: Currents in pharmacy teaching and learning 2011-10, Vol.3 (4), p.299-306
• Main Authors: Donovan, Jennifer L., Kanaan, Abir O., Silva, Matthew A., Horton, Evan, Abel, Cheryl, Belliveau, Paul P.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Assessment; Outcomes; Pharmacy
• ISSN: 1877-1297; 1877-1300
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cptl.2011.07.003

Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education endorses assessment of achievement of learning outcomes in pharmacy programs. This is a process that is aided by requiring that course outcomes align with student learning outcomes (SLOs). We sought to assess student achievement of multiple outcomes that have been linked to a senior capstone course. SLOs were applied to a capstone course that requires a professional poster presentation. Faculty assessment of SLOs achievement and students' self-assessment were completed using specific evaluation tools. Successful achievement was defined as an overall score of ≥70%. There were 158 students assessed by faculty; 92 students completed self-evaluations. Faculty assessment found that students completed 85% of the course evaluation items (70% expected, p ≤ 0.001), with student self-assessment consistent with faculty assessment. The assessment methods in this course provided insight into how well our pharmacy curriculum prepares students for performance of tasks that are essential attributes for a graduating pharmacist.