PHM310H1: Pharmacy in the Modern Health Care System

This course will take an issues-oriented, critical-thinking approach to the healthcare system, with a particular emphasis on pharmacy practice. The course will build on the material from PHM110H1, PHM114H1 and PHM215H1, and will allow a deeper look into areas such as quality and patient safety, e-health technology and the health care needs of diverse populations, including Indigenous peoples. Students will also have an opportunity to explore the role of interprofessional collaboration in health care delivery. Week by week students will examine issues with drug supply and access, pharmacy practice reform, expanded services, collaborative care and reimbursement models, and the interconnectivity of the disparate parts of the health care system. By participating in class discussions, reading course reference materials and completing assignments, students will learn to identify and analyze current and emerging health system issues. In the course of doing so, they will also become aware of, understand and appreciate: factors internal and external to pharmacy and medication use that drive change in practice current strategies for evaluating and improving health care and pharmacy practice the role of interprofessional collaboration in the delivery of healthcare emerging roles and opportunities in pharmacy. This course will help students complement their thinking about medications, individual patients, and the clinical encounter with an orientation to the healthcare system as a whole: how it functions, what are some of its key issues, and how do we tackle them.