Initiating Primary Care Services when the World Is Paused: Lessons for Pharmacists in the Post-COVID-19 Era.

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted primary care and required pharmacists to adapt when implementing primary care services. Many lessons learned through this process are applicable in the post-pandemic era. First, primary care pharmacists must prepare for an ever-changing role and communicate with stakeholders to align with shifting institutional priorities. Additionally, designing a workflow given limited staffing and in-person communication require flexibility for scheduling and referral processes. Proactive outreach and communication via virtual platforms may be used to build trust in place of in-office interactions with providers. Lastly, fostering relationships with patients is essential to the success of the service and often requires creation of patient-centered goals to account for personal barriers. Many pandemic obstacles are transient; however, telehealth, virtual communication, and the subsequent lessons learned in adaptability, creativity, and flexibility when building a clinic practice are everlasting.

Reliability and Validity of a Checklist to Evaluate Student Performance in a Problem-Based Learning Group.

Objective. To validate a problem-based learning (PBL) evaluation checklist to assess individual Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) students' performance in a group. Methods. In 2013, a performance checklist was developed and standardized. To evaluate the reliability and discriminant validity of the checklist, pharmacy students' evaluation scores from 2015-2016 were assessed along with overall program grade point averages (GPA), and scores on knowledge and problem-solving examinations. Predictive analysis software was used to analyze the data. Results. Seventy facilitators generated 1506 evaluation reports for 191 (90 third-year and 101 second-year) students over eight PBL cases. The mean (SD) total score was 40.6 (2.5) for P3s and 39.1 (2.7) for P2s out of a possible 44.2 points. Students' scores improved each semester. Interrater reliability based on intraclass correlation coefficient for all cases was 0.67. Internal reliability as determined by Cronbach alpha was >0.7 for all binary checklist items across all cases. Discriminant validity assessed using Pearson correlation coefficient showed that the total score from the checklist did not correlate with knowledge or problem-solving examination scores. Conclusion. This unique PBL checklist proved to be a reliable and valid tool to assess student performance in small group sessions in a PharmD curriculum.

Pharmacokinetics and investigation of optimal dose ertapenem in intermittent hemodialysis patients.

BACKGROUND: Previous pharmacokinetic studies demonstrated an increase in serum ertapenem concentrations with decreasing kidney function, including patients receiving renal replacement therapy. This study evaluated the pharmacokinetic parameters of ertapenem in patients receiving hemodialysis. METHODS: This prospective, single-center, open-label study examined the pharmacokinetics of a single intravenous (IV) dose of ertapenem 1 g in seven hospitalized noninfected patients undergoing hemodialysis. Blood samples were collected prior to ertapenem administration and at 0.5, 1, 2, 6, 12 and 48 hours (h) after administration. Ertapenem concentrations were determined by validated liquid chromatography mass spectrometry assay. RESULTS: Following an IV bolus of 1 g ertapenem, plasma concentrations declined relatively slowly with a mean ±standard deviation (SD) elimination half-life of 19.3 ±6.6 h. Plasma concentrations were similar in all subjects, with maximum mean plasma concentration observed of 343±48 µg/mL postdose. The mean ±SD values for systemic plasma clearance (CL) and volume of distribution at steady state (Vss) were 2±0.5 mL/min and 3295±1187 mL, respectively. The area under the curve for 0 h-∞ (AUCinf) was 7494 ±1424 h•µg/mL. No gender effect was observed and no serious adverse events were reported. CONCLUSIONS: Ertapenem half-life was prolonged in hemodialysis patients. Considering the nonrenal clearance and the expected 70% removal with high-efficacy hemodialysis, the dose of 1 g ertapenem, three times weekly, after hemodialysis may produce pharmacodynamically sufficient exposure for potential antimicrobial efficacy. Further studies are warranted to assess the clinical efficacy and safety of this dose with prolonged duration of therapy.