Percepções de graduandos do curso de farmácia da UFMG sobre a prática e competências para atuação na farmácia comunitária

Abstract

The pharmacist uses his knowledge in medicines to optimize health outcomes and minimize problems related to pharmacotherapy, contributing to the pacient`s quality of life and to the community. The development of competencies in the undergraduate course in Pharmacy is fundamental to prepare pharmacists to work in community pharmacy, contributing to the health promotion. The objective of this study was to evaluate the perceptions of undergraduate students of the last year of the Pharmacy course at the Faculty of Pharmacy of the Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil, about the practice and competencies to perform in the community pharmacy. A cross-sectional study was carried out using quantitative and qualitative methods, in which all students enrolled in the Pharmacy course in the first semester of 2017 and who practiced in public or private community pharmacies, were invited to participate. The number of students meeting these inclusion criteria was 66. A selffilled questionnaire containing a Likert scale was used, with items referring to perception for performance in the community pharmacy, with scores ranging from one to five, according to the level of agreement of the respondent. For all questions, graduates could do comment. Sixty-three students (95.45%) responded spontaneously to the surveys from June to July 2017. Most of the responses (87.3%) were in agreement that the course developed competencies for professional practice in community pharmacy. Sixty-one students (96.8%) stated that the internship increased their understanding of the pharmaceutical activity in the community pharmacy. Only 2 students (3.2%) reported that the internship did not increase their understanding of professional practice in this field. Student comments suggest that there is a gap in their preparation for clinical practice. It is recommended the qualification of the Pharmacy course for the development of competencies necessary to operate in community pharmacy, in order to incorporate activities related to pharmaceutical care and pharmacotherapy