Poster Presentations (Group II)

OBJECTIVES: The principles of expected professional and patient behavior taught in North American schools of pharmacy generally derive from a Western European male ethics tradition.  Many patients, however, come from cultures which might view “appropriate and inappropriate behavior” differently than the pharmacist.  This poster describes a module in an elective Pharmacy Ethics course which introduces students to ethical considerations unique to people from various cultures they are likely to encounter in Minnesota. METHODS: Each student pharmacist team from the Duluth and Twin Cities campuses consisted of one Anglo student and one student from a minority culture.  In the first year, each team was assigned to explore the culture of the non-Anglo team member.  In subsequent years, students were asked to explore a culture foreign to both members of the student team.  Student teams researched the mores and healthcare practices of their assigned culture through literature reviews, web searches and interviews with persons from that culture.  Student teams presented their findings in class (conducted between the two campuses via “Interactive TV” – ITV), and then students reflected on the module.  RESULTS: Students reported on cultural mores and healthcare practices from the African American, Chinese, Hmong, Latino, Nigerian, Ojibwe (aka Chippewa or Anishinaabe), Somali, and Vietnamese cultures, discussing how these beliefs might impact providing pharmaceutical care to patients from these cultures.  Students preferred exploring a culture unrelated to either team member.  Participants found the exercise so interesting and useful that they recommended a similar experience for all University of Minnesota student pharmacists.  IMPLICATIONS: Recognizing the increasing likelihood that as practitioners they will care for patients from various cultures, student pharmacists value the opportunity to learn about mores and healthcare practices of different peoples.  DURING THIS PRESENTATION: In addition to viewing a description of the Multicultural Ethics module used in the Pharmacy Ethics course, examples of mock clinical cases will be available which illustrate some of the multicultural considerations addressed in the poster.