Assessing the Basic Math Skills of First-Year Doctor of Pharmacy Students

• Published in: Journal of pharmacy teaching 2002, Vol.9 (2), p.17-25
• Main Authors: Latif, David A., Grillo, Joseph A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1044-0054; 1540-7365
• DOI: 10.3109/J060v09n02_02

ABSTRACT The objective of this study was to assess the basic math skills of two classes of doctor of pharmacy students at a private southeastern school of pharmacy. The Basic Math Skills Test (BMST) was used to assess 121 first-year doctor of pharmacy students from the classes of 2003 and 2004. All entering students present during orientation week were tested using the BMST. The BMST consists of a 50-question, timed math test that measures basic math skills in 9 different areas. The areas and level of difficulty were taken from an eighth-grade mathematics textbook. In accordance with the recommendation of the developer, students were allotted 20 minutes to complete the exam. Results revealed that the cumulative mean score on the BMST of this sample was 68.90%. Implications of the study: (1) poor basic math skills impede successful completion of the pharmacy curriculum and (2) poor basic math skills may increase the probabilities of mathematical mistakes when filling prescriptions in pharmacy practice. Two alternative educational interventions are advanced for remediating those students who are identified as being deficient in basic mathematics (those who achieve a percentage score of less than 70).