Defining and unpacking the core concepts of pharmacology: A global initiative
Guilding C. White P.J. Cunningham M. Kelly-Laubscher R. Koenig J. Babey A.-M. Tucker S. Kelly J.P. Gorman L. Aronsson P. Hawes M. Ngo S.N.T. Mifsud J. Werners A.H. Hinton T. Khan F. Aljofan M. Angelo T.
February 2024John Wiley and Sons Inc
British Journal of Pharmacology
2024#181Issue 3375 - 392 pp.
Background and Purpose: Development of core concepts in disciplines such as biochemistry, microbiology and physiology have transformed teaching. They provide the foundation for the development of teaching resources for global educators, as well as valid and reliable approaches to assessment. An international research consensus recently identified 25 core concepts of pharmacology. The current study aimed to define and unpack these concepts. Experimental Approach: A two-phase, iterative approach, involving 60 international pharmacology education experts, was used. The first phase involved drafting definitions for core concepts and identifying key sub-concepts via a series of online meetings and asynchronous work. These were refined in the second phase, through a 2-day hybrid workshop followed by a further series of online meetings and asynchronous work. Key Results: The project produced consensus definitions for a final list of 24 core concepts and 103 sub-concepts of pharmacology. The iterative, discursive methodology resulted in modification of concepts from the original study, including change of ‘drug–receptor interaction’ to ‘drug–target interaction’ and the change of the core concept ‘agonists and antagonists’ to sub-concepts of drug–target interaction. Conclusions and Implications: Definitions and sub-concepts of 24 core concepts provide an evidence-based foundation for pharmacology curricula development and evaluation. The next steps for this project include the development of a concept inventory to assess acquisition of concepts, as well as the development of case studies and educational resources to support teaching by the global pharmacology community, and student learning of the most critical and fundamental concepts of the discipline.
core concept , curriculum development , Delphi method , health science education , pharmacology education , science education , sub-concept
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School of Medicine, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, VIC, Australia
Strathclyde Institute for Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences (SIPBS), University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, United Kingdom
Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, College of Medicine and Health, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
School of Medicine, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom
Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia
School of Medicine, Medical Science and Nutrition, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, United Kingdom
Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, School of Medicine, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland
Department of Medical Education, University of Central Florida College of Medicine, Orlando, FL, United States
Department of Biomedical Education, Temple University, Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, United States
Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Surrey, Guildford, United Kingdom
School of Animal and Veterinary Science, Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Technology, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
Department of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, University of Malta, Msida, Malta
School of Veterinary Medicine, St. Georges University, True Blue, Grenada
Sydney Pharmacy School, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
National Heart and Lung Institute, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
Department of Biomedical Science, School of Medicine Nazarbayev University, Astana, Kazakhstan
University of North Carolina, UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
School of Medicine
Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Strathclyde Institute for Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences (SIPBS)
Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics
School of Medicine
Faculty of Medicine and Health
School of Medicine
Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics
Department of Medical Education
Department of Biomedical Education
Department of Pharmacology
Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences
School of Animal and Veterinary Science
Department of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics
School of Veterinary Medicine
Sydney Pharmacy School
National Heart and Lung Institute
Department of Biomedical Science
University of North Carolina
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