Using Community Engagement to Move Upstream to Address Social Determinants of Health.

ABSTRACT: Given its role as a safety net institution, the University of Florida Health (UF Health) Jacksonville has responded to the community's needs through partnerships with the community for decades. Such academic-community partnerships have a broad emphasis on population health and primary care that expands the model of care to include community engagement, which allows such partnerships to promote health and well-being and reduce health inequalities by addressing social determinants of health (SDOH).This report describes the UF Health Jacksonville and University of Florida College of Medicine - Jacksonville's creation of the Urban Health Alliance (UHA) in June 2019 due to continued poor health outcomes and inequities within the community. The mission of the UHA is to improve community health using community-focused, self-sustainable strategies and solutions to impact SDOH (i.e., more upstream interventions). Using the tenets of the collective impact model, the UHA acts as a backbone organization to achieve these objectives by empowering community partners to affect changes in policy, systems, and other structures necessary for the optimal health of the community. The UHA's work is divided across 4 pillars: services, research, education, and policy. These pillars reflect the traditional missions of academic medical centers-clinical care, research, and education-and the need to address structural changes to improve community health-namely, policy. By addressing the issues that most impact the patients and community of UF Health Jacksonville, the UHA can serve as an example of how an academic medical center can use the traditional missions to improve the community's health and move toward health equity.

Smart Meds: Using Pharmacists to Address Health Literacy Disparities Among Medically- and Socially-Vulnerable Populations.

Patients in historically underserved communities are most vulnerable to uncontrolled chronic conditions and report a lack of health knowledge to manage them. This report aims to describe the development of SMART MEDS, a pharmacy-led program implemented to address health literacy disparities among medically and socially vulnerable patients.

Community Champions: The Crucial Contribution of an Independent Pharmacy in COVID-19 Vaccination Efforts in an Underserved Community.

Historically, pharmacists in independent community pharmacies have been pivotal in promoting community health. During the COVID-19 pandemic, they demonstrated their commitment by advocating for vaccination and providing accessible care, particularly in underserved communities. By addressing disparities, implementing strategies like mobile clinics and community outreach, and fostering trust and engagement, independent community pharmacists played a crucial role in bridging gaps in healthcare access for vulnerable populations and mitigating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Exploring Trends in Social Vulnerability for Pharmacy Students at a Large Public University.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to describe trends in social vulnerability (SV) among pharmacy students at a large public college of pharmacy, and to describe differences in SV by race and ethnicity using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). METHODS: The SVI was determined for each student admitted between Fall 2017 and Fall 2022 using the submitted permanent address for each student in a deidentified fashion. International students and students not from the 50 US states were excluded from the analysis. RESULTS: During the study period, 1427 pharmacy students met the study inclusion criteria and were included in the final analysis. Students from historically minoritized populations accounted for 53.4% (n = 763/1427) of students. The median SVI score for all students was 0.4091 (interquartile range [IQR]: 0.2091-0.6395), which is consistent with low/moderate SV risk. When considering SVI by race, students from historically minoritized populations had a higher median SVI (0.4807 [IQR: 0.2791-0.7071] vs 0.3562 [IQR: 0.1561-0.5523]), and were more likely to come from moderate/high SV regions compared with White students (odds ratio 2.00 [95% confidence interval: 1.609-2.486]). CONCLUSION: Among pharmacy students at a large public university, a substantial proportion of students had moderate/high SV risk, particularly those from historically minoritized backgrounds. Colleges and schools of pharmacy need to consider the unique needs of students from high SV backgrounds and provide intentional equity-based mitigation strategies to maximize the potential for student success for all.

Didactic education for the deaf or hard of hearing learner in a pharmacy curriculum: Commentary.

INTRODUCTION: There is a long-standing commitment in higher education to provide parallel experiences for students with disabilities, including those with hearing disabilities or impairments. The commitment remains the same in professional pharmacy school education, with the objective to train competent clinical pharmacy practitioners. COMMENTARY: Limited literature exists to provide schools and colleges of pharmacy (S/COP) with best practices when accommodating students who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHOH) in the didactic pharmacy curriculum. The authors will examine practices implemented at the COP to accommodate students with either a DHOH disability. IMPLICATIONS: Students who are DHOH in didactic pharmacy education require individualized assistance to help ensure success throughout the program. A collaborative approach between the student, disability resources, student affairs office, faculty, and staff help ensure accommodations are met and fosters a culture of inclusiveness.

Implementation of a series of advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) preparatory topics into a skills lab curriculum.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Advanced pharmacy practice experiences (APPEs) play a significant role in readying students for professional practice. Factors beyond traditional knowledge and skills taught in the didactic curriculum may play a role in APPE success. The purpose of this manuscript is to describe an activity implemented within a third-year skills lab focused on APPE preparedness, the methods used, and student feedback related to the series. EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY AND SETTING: Experiential and skills lab faculty collaborated to generate advice for students regarding common misconceptions or areas of difficulty encountered on APPEs. The advice was developed into short topics that were paired with and presented at the start of most lab sessions with impromptu contributions from faculty and facilitators integrated at the time of delivery. FINDINGS: One hundred twenty-seven third-year pharmacy students (54% of the cohort) consented to complete a follow-up survey and provided feedback on the series. Most students agreed or strongly agreed with the elements evaluated, providing positive feedback for all ranked statements. Feedback from free-text response questions indicated that many students found all topics presented to be beneficial and suggested that topics of interest for the upcoming semester included advice regarding residencies/fellowships/employment, wellness, and communication with preceptors. SUMMARY: Student feedback indicated an overall perception of benefit and value from most respondents. Implementation of a similar series in other courses is a potential area for future study.