Preparing student pharmacists to care for patients exposed to intimate partner violence

Abstract

Introduction: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a serious public health problem. Little is known about pharmacists' IPV knowledge and awareness. This study assessed student pharmacists' knowledge, attitudes, and awareness of IPV and examined the impact of a brief curricular unit on these factors.

Methods: The Physician Readiness to Manage Intimate Partner Violence Survey was adapted for use with student pharmacists and administered at two pharmacy schools, one private (n = 88) and one public institution (n = 104). Students at one institution were exposed to a curricular unit on IPV tailored for pharmacy practice and completed a post-assessment.

Results: Students at both institutions had low levels of IPV-related knowledge, answering <60% of items correctly. Students reported low levels of perceived knowledge and preparation. After exposure to the educational intervention (n = 60), knowledge scores increased on a matched post-assessment. Students across both institutions (n = 29) provided comments indicating that they believed IPV is an important issue, that this topic was novel and that pharmacists should address IPV, that pharmacists should be trained on IPV and a desire for training, and that there are barriers to addressing IPV in the pharmacy setting.

Conclusions: Preparing student pharmacists to care for patients exposed to IPV may improve patient outcomes and positively impact the lives of the patients they serve. A brief educational intervention improved students' knowledge about IPV and confidence in screening patients for IPV.

Keywords: Educational intervention; Intimate partner violence; PREMIS; Pharmacy; Pharmacy education.