Three final year PharmD students (Ayisha, Fatima, Almeera) of College of Pharmacy, Gulf Medical University successfully completed their advanced pharmacy practice experience (APPE) internship training in June 2018 at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi (CCAD). Another group of 4 PharmD students started their training in July 2018.
Ayisha, Fatima, and Almeera were trained in Inpatient Hospital Pharmacy Practice rotation. This training is as part of the MOU signed between the College of Pharmacy and CCAD. The GMU students were very much part of the pharmacy practice activities with the Preceptor Pharmacists encouraging students to learn.
As per Ayisha; “The clinical placement at CCAD was a remarkable learning experience. From the time we arrived, we were warmly welcomed and made a part of the ‘PHARmily’ (nickname for Department of Pharmacy at CCAD), surrounded by like-minded individuals who were eager to teach and impart their knowledge. During the rotation, we participated in the early morning huddles which promoted visibility and speaking up, where they discussed updates, patient care stories, census from each department, medication safety, general announcements and new journal articles all to improve practice. They also encouraged us to participate and ask questions, especially during the unit based postings and gave us practical tips for our future. It was truly an experience not to be missed out on and we are grateful to be given the opportunity to broaden our horizon and be able to represent GMU in a good light in a different facility”.
The Dean of the College of Pharmacy, Gulf Medical University, Professor Sherief Khalifa commented “Having PharmD internships in advanced healthcare facilities observing international standards of pharmacy practice represents a major quality assurance and enhancement measure in the delivery of our PharmD curriculum at GMU. In addition to CCAD, our PharmD students receive internship training at Sheikh Khalifa Medical City Ajman, Virginia Commonwealth University, USA and University of Saint Joseph, USA. All these experiences serve to enhance their overall pharmacy practice and clinical pharmacy skills, broaden their horizons and internationalize their education enabling them to practice pharmacy anywhere in the world after their graduation.