| I.S.Haworth et
al. A Problem-Based Learning, Case Study Approach to Pharmaceutics
: Faculty and Student Perspectives. Am. J. Pharm. Ed., 1999, in
press.
The two-semester Pharm.D. Level I Pharmaceutics course at the University
of Southern California School of Pharmacy has been taught using a student-centered,
problem-based learning (PBL) approach for the last five years. The most
important element of the course is the assignment of two case studies in
each semester, and the performance of these case studies by groups of students.
Our intention is to emphasize group working, cooperation and collective
achievement as being equally important to individual effort and grades.
The course involves the participation in lectures and discussion groups
of faculty, students and teaching assistants, and of student 'mentors'
- students who took the course in the previous year. Over a five year period
we have designed and then refined our approach within the constraints created
by a class size of about 170 students. Here we describe our experiences
to date in the teaching and administration of the course, from a faculty
perspective. We provide a number of suggestions regarding the most effective
structure of the course, the appropriate methods of evaluation, the potential
pitfalls, and the demands of such a course on both students and faculty.
To help the reader to understand further the impact of the PBL approach
on students, we asked several students who have both taken the course,
and then acted as mentors, to provide an independent, student perspective
on the teaching approach. Their perspective is presented in the final part
of the manuscript.
I.S.Haworth, M.B.Bolger and S.P.Eriksen. The Use
of Computer-Based Case Studies in a Problem-Solving Curriculum. Am.
J. Pharm. Ed., 1997, 61, 97-102.
In this article we discuss the use of computers in the teaching of physical
chemistry in the Pharm.D. curriculum, in a problem-solving oriented course
based on the performance of case studies by groups of students. The purpose
of the course is both to increase the computer literacy of students, while
at the same time educating them in critical thinking and problem-solving
in areas relevant to pharmaceutical formulation and delivery. We will discuss
three computer-based case studies which address the kinetics of drug degradation,
the flocculation of dispersed systems and the sequestration of drugs via
binding to albumin. In answering these case studies, students were expected
to use MS-Windows, Excel spreadsheets, e-mail, molecular graphics, word
processing, on-line literature searching and other computer-based techniques.
The emphasis on computation was motivated by the changing role of the pharmacist,
and the need for pharmacy graduates to effectively compete with other professionals
in the job market. We believe that individuals who possess effective computer
skills, strong foundations in fundamental pharmaceutical concepts, and
an ability to problem-solve will be able to make contributions in many
areas, and will have the flexibility to respond to a changing professional
environment.
M.B.Bolger and I.S.Haworth. PharmLabTM
: A Computer Program for the Calculation and Visualization of Drug Degradation
pH Rate Profiles. Am. J. Pharm. Ed., 1997, 61, 281-287.
PharmLabTM is an MS-Windows program that computes a time
course for drug degradation and can be used to calculate a pH rate profile
for a drug. We have used the program in an educational setting to illustrate
and examine the kinetics of the hydrolysis of ionizable esters as a function
of the molecular structure of the ester. In addition to the educational
value, we believe that the simple relationships used to parameterize the
program provide some new insights into the pH rate profile for ester hydrolysis,
and could offer an accurate predictive method, given a broader-based parameterization.
The program is based on experimental rate profiles and on numerical integration
of the differential equations that describe the hydrolysis of ionizable
esters. The influence of the pKa of the ionizable group on the
experimental rate profiles follows from standard differential rate equations.
Empirical parameters derived as a function of the pKa values
of the reactants and products in the hydrolysis reaction were used to calculate
changes in rate constants caused by changes in the molecular structure.
We illustrate the derivation of these parameters for a series of esters
structurally similar to procaine (2-(N,N-diethylamino)ethyl 4-aminobenzoate),
and show how the pH rate profiles we obtain can be interpreted in terms
of the structural differences between the esters. |