Wed 11 October 2023
Pharmacy student journal shines a light on Medication Safety
Antimicrobial stewardship, culturally appropriate medicines, geriatric medicine, and the evolving roles of the pharmacist are among the many highlights in the fourth issue of the Australian Pharmacy Students’ Journal (APSJ), the world’s first peer-reviewed pharmacy student journal.
An initiative of the National Australian Pharmacy Students’ Association (NAPSA), and proudly supported by the Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Australia (SHPA) as strategic partner – APSJ provides students with the opportunities to publish research under the guiding arm of the editorial team lead by Co-Editors-in-Chief Elissar Mansour and Elishka Juricka.
In the feature article ‘Availability and Efficacy of Assessment Strategies for De-labelling of Antobiotic Allergies, and the Role of the Pharmacist’ authors Chhiv Nay Lim, Tyler Crook and Kylie Tran assess strategies used to address the current acceleration of antimicrobial resistance with the aim of identifying the most effective standard for antibiotic allergy de-labelling.
In ‘A Retrospective Audit of the Accuracy of Medication Related Information in Discharge Summaries from Acute Geriatric Units, and Evaluating the Impact of Pharmacist Intervention at the Time of Discharge’ authors Tegan Phillips, Natasha Mallam, Alexandra Brooks, Gauri Godbole and Jennifer Moroney use original research to address the widespread and concerning medication related discrepancies in hospital discharge summaries, outlining opportunities to improve documentation with the aim of improving transitions of care.
While ‘An Evaluation of Culturally Appropriate Complementary Medicines: A Short Report’ sees authors Naba Al-jiboori, Mary Bushell and Lyn Todd conduct a study with the aim of developing a tool to assist pharmacists to deliver culturally-appropriate patient-centred care in the provision of complementary medicines.
SHPA President Tom Simpson says seeing the breadth of talent arising from the student research field is a promising sign for the future of pharmacy.
‘As we work towards expanding scope of practice for pharmacists and technicians, it is more important than ever that we equip the practitioners of tomorrow with the research skills required to critically analyse their contribution to healthcare in a broader sense.
‘SHPA is proud to be APSJ’s strategic partner and support more students to make a positive impact on the pharmacy profession.’
The APSJ sits alongside the Journal of Pharmacy Practice and Research (JPPR), Pharmacy GRIT, the NAPSA-SHPA Student Symposium, Provisional (intern) Membership, internship support and Foundation Residencies and Advanced Training Residencies in SHPA’s suite of programs and resources providing a path into the challenging and rewarding world of specialised pharmacy practice.
Voluntary APSJ Peer Reviewer positions remain open to students currently enrolled in a Bachelor of Pharmacy Honours and/or Masters of Pharmacy, or current Pharmacy Interns with prior research experience. APSJ article submissions are open to current Pharmacy Students and Interns in the form of original research articles, academic review articles, and case reports. Research in which an academic has supported a student will be accepted, however the student must have led the research, and must be the main author.