abstract
- PROBLEM ADDRESSED: Prescribing is an essential skill for physicians. Despite the fact that prescribing habits are still developing in residency, formal pharmacotherapy curricula are not commonplace in postgraduate programs. OBJECTIVE OF PROGRAM: To teach first-year and second-year family medicine residents a systematic prescribing process using a medication prescribing framework, which could be replicated and distributed. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION: A hybrid model of Web-based (www.rationalprescribing.com) and in-class seminar learning was used. Web-based modules, consisting of foundational pharmacotherapeutic content, were each followed by an in-class session, which involved applying content to case studies. A physician and a pharmacist were coteachers and they used simulated cases to enhance application of pharmacotherapeutic content and modeled interprofessional collaboration. CONCLUSION: This systematic approach to prescribing was well received by family medicine residents. It might be important to introduce the process in the undergraduate curriculum-when learners are building their therapeutic foundational knowledge. Incorporating formal pharmacotherapeutic curriculum into residency teaching is challenging and requires further study to identify potential effects on prescribing habits.