Background The South African National Drug Policy (SA-NDP) was introduced to promote rational med... more Background The South African National Drug Policy (SA-NDP) was introduced to promote rational medicine use (RMU). This study evaluates the quality of prescribing in the public healthcare sector in South Africa's Limpopo province following the World Health Organization's (WHO) rational prescribing standards. In addition, the prescribing practices in South Africa were compared to other African countries. Methods A prospective cross-sectional survey of patients' prescriptions was conducted in Limpopo, South Africa, from October to December 2018. Findings were compared with the WHO reference values (WHO-RV), and the International Network of Rational Use of Drugs (IRDP) tool was used to measure the degree of rational prescribing. The optimal IRDP value was defined as 1. Study findings were compared with results from a previous study conducted in Limpopo and studies from Ethiopia and Eritrea. Results Six hundred prescriptions were reviewed. The mean (SD) age was 43.9 ± 24.4 ye...
Introduction An estimated 38 million people are living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) wo... more Introduction An estimated 38 million people are living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) worldwide. Pharmacists are well positioned to provide care to patients with HIV, but gaps in HIV education among pharmacists exist. Recognizing the need to educate and prepare future pharmacists, a 2-credit advanced HIV elective course was created for Doctor of Pharmacy students at Washington State University College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences in the United States, and Masters of Clinical Pharmacy students from University of Western Cape School of Pharmacy in South Africa. Methods Course topics included diagnosis and treatment of HIV in children and adults, management of common comorbidities, pre-exposure prophylaxis, pharmacogenetic applications, and antiretroviral drug-drug interactions. Course effectiveness was evaluated using student examination results. Student perceptions were evaluated using pre- and post-course self-assessments involving abilities, confidence, and attitudes toward caring for people living with HIV. Results Student pharmacists demonstrated competency in HIV knowledge, demonstrated skills in application to clinical-based scenarios, and reported significantly improved confidence and abilities as well as positive changes in attitudes toward people with HIV. Conclusion This course contributed to student learning across different student cohorts in an institutional program in the United States including successful execution of distance learning and clinical application for students at a program in South Africa.
Introduction An estimated 38 million people are living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) wo... more Introduction An estimated 38 million people are living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) worldwide. Pharmacists are well positioned to provide care to patients with HIV, but gaps in HIV education among pharmacists exist. Recognizing the need to educate and prepare future pharmacists, a 2-credit advanced HIV elective course was created for Doctor of Pharmacy students at Washington State University College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences in the United States, and Masters of Clinical Pharmacy students from University of Western Cape School of Pharmacy in South Africa. Methods Course topics included diagnosis and treatment of HIV in children and adults, management of common comorbidities, pre-exposure prophylaxis, pharmacogenetic applications, and antiretroviral drug-drug interactions. Course effectiveness was evaluated using student examination results. Student perceptions were evaluated using pre- and post-course self-assessments involving abilities, confidence, and atti...
Reducing maternal and child mortality is a health priority in South Africa. Therefore, health pro... more Reducing maternal and child mortality is a health priority in South Africa. Therefore, health professional education should produce graduates that can meet these needs. This study compared the maternal and child health (MCH) knowledge and skills of cohorts of final-year students exposed to a traditional (in 2017 and 2018) and integrated (2019) curriculum using a 34-item questionnaire. Between the 2019 and 2017 cohorts, ANOVA and post hoc analysis showed significant differences in the reproductive and sexual health component which was dispersed in the second and final years of study (p = 0.007, Mean Difference (MD) = 8.3) andneonatal and child care (p = 0.000, MD = 15). while it was only in maternal and antenatal care (p = 0.009, MD = 10.0) for the 2019 and 2018 cohorts. Significant differences were observed in participants’ average mean scores (p = 0.000 for 2018 and 2017). The highest mean scores were recorded by the 2019 cohort in the three assessments. A one-sample t-test showed ...
Background: The rational use of medicine is fundamental to ensure effective and safe patient medi... more Background: The rational use of medicine is fundamental to ensure effective and safe patient medicine treatment, and hence, should be monitored. Undisputable evidence exists for the teratogenic risk factors associated with sodium valproate. Consequently, the Western Cape Department of Health introduced a policy (2019) recommending alternatives for valproate in women of childbearing age, including lamotrigine or levetiracetam as alternatives for patients on antiretrovirals. This study aimed to describe the change in the consumption of valproate, lamotrigine and levetiracetam after a policy implementation in public sector health facilities of the Western Cape, South Africa.Methods: This observational study followed a quasi-experimental design. Consumption data from the Cape Medical Depot over the period 01 April 2018 to 31 March 2020 were analysed retrospectively. Consumption was presented as a defined daily dose (DDD) per 1000 population per quarter for sodium valproate, levetiraceta...
African Journal of Health Professions Education, 2021
Background. The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in innovative and creative changes to educational prac... more Background. The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in innovative and creative changes to educational practices in order to produce pharmacy graduates amidst a global crisis. Experiential learning was unable to take place during the highest levels of lockdown in South Africa with access to health care facilities restricted to essential staff only.
Renier is the winner of the Johnson & Johnson Teacher of the Year award which was awarded to him ... more Renier is the winner of the Johnson & Johnson Teacher of the Year award which was awarded to him at the APSSA conference in 2017
The pharmacists’ role in the healthcare system is expanding internationally beyond the traditiona... more The pharmacists’ role in the healthcare system is expanding internationally beyond the traditional roles of compounding and medicine supply management, to providing patient-centred care and updating health care workers on relevant medicine therapies. 1 Pharmacists are pivotal in meeting the medicine-related needs of patients and other health care professionals. Even though pharmacists will remain responsible for medicine supply management, the routine activities associated with this can be handled by qualified pharmacist’s assistants and/or pharmacy technicians, while allowing pharmacists to embark on pharmaceutical care, identifying and solving the risks associated with medicine use and therapeutic drug monitoring. 2 With an increase in the development of new medicines, it has become imperative for pharmacists to be integral members of the multidisciplinary team in order to ensure rational use of these medicines. 3 Patient safety with the use of medicines have become a global conce...
Background The South African National Drug Policy (SA-NDP) was introduced to promote rational med... more Background The South African National Drug Policy (SA-NDP) was introduced to promote rational medicine use (RMU). This study evaluates the quality of prescribing in the public healthcare sector in South Africa's Limpopo province following the World Health Organization's (WHO) rational prescribing standards. In addition, the prescribing practices in South Africa were compared to other African countries. Methods A prospective cross-sectional survey of patients' prescriptions was conducted in Limpopo, South Africa, from October to December 2018. Findings were compared with the WHO reference values (WHO-RV), and the International Network of Rational Use of Drugs (IRDP) tool was used to measure the degree of rational prescribing. The optimal IRDP value was defined as 1. Study findings were compared with results from a previous study conducted in Limpopo and studies from Ethiopia and Eritrea. Results Six hundred prescriptions were reviewed. The mean (SD) age was 43.9 ± 24.4 ye...
Introduction An estimated 38 million people are living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) wo... more Introduction An estimated 38 million people are living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) worldwide. Pharmacists are well positioned to provide care to patients with HIV, but gaps in HIV education among pharmacists exist. Recognizing the need to educate and prepare future pharmacists, a 2-credit advanced HIV elective course was created for Doctor of Pharmacy students at Washington State University College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences in the United States, and Masters of Clinical Pharmacy students from University of Western Cape School of Pharmacy in South Africa. Methods Course topics included diagnosis and treatment of HIV in children and adults, management of common comorbidities, pre-exposure prophylaxis, pharmacogenetic applications, and antiretroviral drug-drug interactions. Course effectiveness was evaluated using student examination results. Student perceptions were evaluated using pre- and post-course self-assessments involving abilities, confidence, and attitudes toward caring for people living with HIV. Results Student pharmacists demonstrated competency in HIV knowledge, demonstrated skills in application to clinical-based scenarios, and reported significantly improved confidence and abilities as well as positive changes in attitudes toward people with HIV. Conclusion This course contributed to student learning across different student cohorts in an institutional program in the United States including successful execution of distance learning and clinical application for students at a program in South Africa.
Introduction An estimated 38 million people are living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) wo... more Introduction An estimated 38 million people are living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) worldwide. Pharmacists are well positioned to provide care to patients with HIV, but gaps in HIV education among pharmacists exist. Recognizing the need to educate and prepare future pharmacists, a 2-credit advanced HIV elective course was created for Doctor of Pharmacy students at Washington State University College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences in the United States, and Masters of Clinical Pharmacy students from University of Western Cape School of Pharmacy in South Africa. Methods Course topics included diagnosis and treatment of HIV in children and adults, management of common comorbidities, pre-exposure prophylaxis, pharmacogenetic applications, and antiretroviral drug-drug interactions. Course effectiveness was evaluated using student examination results. Student perceptions were evaluated using pre- and post-course self-assessments involving abilities, confidence, and atti...
Reducing maternal and child mortality is a health priority in South Africa. Therefore, health pro... more Reducing maternal and child mortality is a health priority in South Africa. Therefore, health professional education should produce graduates that can meet these needs. This study compared the maternal and child health (MCH) knowledge and skills of cohorts of final-year students exposed to a traditional (in 2017 and 2018) and integrated (2019) curriculum using a 34-item questionnaire. Between the 2019 and 2017 cohorts, ANOVA and post hoc analysis showed significant differences in the reproductive and sexual health component which was dispersed in the second and final years of study (p = 0.007, Mean Difference (MD) = 8.3) andneonatal and child care (p = 0.000, MD = 15). while it was only in maternal and antenatal care (p = 0.009, MD = 10.0) for the 2019 and 2018 cohorts. Significant differences were observed in participants’ average mean scores (p = 0.000 for 2018 and 2017). The highest mean scores were recorded by the 2019 cohort in the three assessments. A one-sample t-test showed ...
Background: The rational use of medicine is fundamental to ensure effective and safe patient medi... more Background: The rational use of medicine is fundamental to ensure effective and safe patient medicine treatment, and hence, should be monitored. Undisputable evidence exists for the teratogenic risk factors associated with sodium valproate. Consequently, the Western Cape Department of Health introduced a policy (2019) recommending alternatives for valproate in women of childbearing age, including lamotrigine or levetiracetam as alternatives for patients on antiretrovirals. This study aimed to describe the change in the consumption of valproate, lamotrigine and levetiracetam after a policy implementation in public sector health facilities of the Western Cape, South Africa.Methods: This observational study followed a quasi-experimental design. Consumption data from the Cape Medical Depot over the period 01 April 2018 to 31 March 2020 were analysed retrospectively. Consumption was presented as a defined daily dose (DDD) per 1000 population per quarter for sodium valproate, levetiraceta...
African Journal of Health Professions Education, 2021
Background. The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in innovative and creative changes to educational prac... more Background. The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in innovative and creative changes to educational practices in order to produce pharmacy graduates amidst a global crisis. Experiential learning was unable to take place during the highest levels of lockdown in South Africa with access to health care facilities restricted to essential staff only.
Renier is the winner of the Johnson & Johnson Teacher of the Year award which was awarded to him ... more Renier is the winner of the Johnson & Johnson Teacher of the Year award which was awarded to him at the APSSA conference in 2017
The pharmacists’ role in the healthcare system is expanding internationally beyond the traditiona... more The pharmacists’ role in the healthcare system is expanding internationally beyond the traditional roles of compounding and medicine supply management, to providing patient-centred care and updating health care workers on relevant medicine therapies. 1 Pharmacists are pivotal in meeting the medicine-related needs of patients and other health care professionals. Even though pharmacists will remain responsible for medicine supply management, the routine activities associated with this can be handled by qualified pharmacist’s assistants and/or pharmacy technicians, while allowing pharmacists to embark on pharmaceutical care, identifying and solving the risks associated with medicine use and therapeutic drug monitoring. 2 With an increase in the development of new medicines, it has become imperative for pharmacists to be integral members of the multidisciplinary team in order to ensure rational use of these medicines. 3 Patient safety with the use of medicines have become a global conce...
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