Written by University of Tennessee College of Pharmacy
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Thirty UT COP student pharmacists had the opportunity to take part in an international APPE this year, traveling to countries across the globe. Student pharmacists learned about pharmacy practice, culture and people of Manchester and London, England; Chiang Mai and Mahasarkham, Thailand; Australia, Hungary, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, Thailand and Turkey. The international rotation program has been in place for over 20 years.
Mya Santos and Cindy Brasher, Istanbul, Turkey. “Mya Santos and I traveled to Istanbul, Turkey for our International Rotation. We were greeted by a pharmacist that had been in Memphis in September as part of the exchange program. Clinical pharmacy in Turkey is being established by a Masters and Doctoral program at Marmara University led by Prof. Dr. Fikret Izzettin. He attended pharmacy school with Dean Gourley. Turkey has universal health care so community pharmacists are paid by the government and also sell many beauty and health products for profit. In the hospital settings, there are four types of hospitals ranging from public to private hospitals. Our rotation experience included visits to each of these facilities, presenting to pharmacists and students about clinical pharmacy in the United States, and attending rounds with clinical pharmacy Masters students. From this experience, I have a greater appreciation of the state of clinical pharmacy in the US, a desire to be a greater advocate of health care provider status, and a plan to learn Spanish to communicate better with some of my patients. The beauty of the country of Turkey, the bustle of living in a city of 14 million people, and the hospitality of the Turkish people made this experience unique and unforgettable.”Meghan Maynard, Whitney Harrison, Sabrina Groves & Supriya Ponnapula in London, EnglandBethany Shoulders and Kelly Covert in France. “Bethany and I had the opportunity to go to Lyon, France for our rotation. We worked in the cardiology and neurology hospital as well as a local community pharmacy in Lyon. Hospital pharmacists in France play a huge role in the selection of medical devices to be used in the hospital. Community pharmacies place most of the drugs that are OTC in America behind the counter. Additionally, everything is in “30-day packs.” Nothing is counted out in the community pharmacy. We loved our time in Lyon and met some wonderful people.”Cole Larsen, Clayton Johnston, & Binoy Shah, New Zealand. “The pharmacists and students we met in New Zealand were so hospitable, and the country has to be one of the most beautiful places on earth! It was a once in a lifetime experience!”Craig Greenfield, Grace Lee, Sarah Jackson & Sarah Jansala at a pharmacy in JapanAshley Marshall and Natalie Finch, Australia. “Natalie and I had a great time traveling in Australia. It took us a total of 24 hours flying to arrive, but the people, food, wildlife, and scenery there were well worth the wait. In the hospitals, the pharmacist is primarily responsible for obtaining an accurate medication history and dispensing discharge medications so the patient does not have to go to a community pharmacy to get them filled. Our favorite part of the day was morning and afternoon tea breaks. Australia is a great place to visit and we hope we have the opportunity to return.”
