Preparing students for the realities of contemporary pharmacy practice. American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy.

A report of the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy Study Committee on the Preparation of Students for the Realities of Contemporary Pharmacy Practice is presented. The development of the committee and its charge are described. The report includes a description of the purpose and essential elements of contemporary pharmacy practice, and the barriers restricting their achievement that arise within the profession, society, and pharmacy education. Recommendations of the committee regarding curricular offerings, instructional strategies for developing problem-solving, communication, and self-learning skills, types of post-entry-level education and training programs, career counseling, student recruitment, pharmacy faculty, and intra- and interprofessional relations are discussed. The report calls for a combined effort on behalf of practitioners and educators to prepare graduates to enter practice in community, hospital, or long-term care pharmacy, and emphasizes the need to match these efforts to the dynamics of contemporary pharmacy practice.