Promoting equity, diversity and inclusion in health science education: Evaluation of a pharmacy curriculum.

OBJECTIVES

Equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) are increasingly recognised as important in health professions education; however, limited evidence exists regarding how EDI is represented across pharmacy teaching materials or perceived by learners. This study evaluated EDI representation within patient cases used across a pharmacy curriculum and explored the perspectives of current students and recent graduates on areas for improvement.

METHODS

This qualitative study was conducted between July 2023 and January 2024. Content analysis was undertaken of written patient cases across a pharmacy curriculum, followed by semi-structured focus group discussions with current students and recent graduates.

KEY FINDINGS: A total of 201 unique patient cases from 68 assessments, 34 lectures and 99 workshops/tutorials were analysed. Cases predominantly represented adults, while ancestry or ethnicity, relationship status, religion, geographical location and psychosocial characteristics were frequently not stated. Four focus groups were conducted with 10 participants, comprising five current students, three intern pharmacists and two early-career pharmacists. Participants described inconsistent EDI representation within the curriculum and perceived this as affecting their preparedness to care for diverse patient populations. They identified opportunities for earlier, more consistent and purposeful integration of EDI within patient cases and learning activities.

CONCLUSIONS

The curriculum audit and participant perspectives identified gaps in EDI representation within pharmacy patient cases. These findings support a more deliberate and scaffolded approach to incorporating EDI across pharmacy teaching materials, with attention to both authentic representation and the clinical relevance of diverse patient characteristics.