Curriculum

1st Quarter (Summer) Quarter Credits 2nd Quarter (Fall) Quarter Credits
Introduction and Initiation to the Practice of Pharmacy 2  Biotechnology 2
Introduction to Health Care System 2 Medication Safety 2
Anatomy & Physiology 4 Biochemistry 4
Pharmaceutics I 3 Medical Informatics 2
Pharmaceutical Calculations w/Lab 2 + 1 Pharmaceutics II with w/Lab 2 + 1
Microbiology/Immunology 4  Communication and Collaborative Solutions 2
TOTAL 18 TOTAL 15
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3rd Quarter (Winter) Quarter Credits 4th Quarter (Spring) Quarter Credits
Pharmacy Law and Ethics 3 Clinical Laboratory 3
Complementary Alternative Medicine 3 Physical Assessment w/Lab 1 + 1
Research Design & Literature Evaluation I & II 4 Pharmacology/Medicinal Chemistry I/II 5 +5
Pharmaceutics III/ Biopharmaceutics/ Clinical Pharmacokinetics 4 Applied Therapeutics Lab 1
Sterile Dosages Forms w/Lab 1 + 1 Introduction to Pharmacogenomics 1
Public Health Issues 2    
       
TOTAL 18 TOTAL 17
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Professional Year Two (P2)
(64 credits)

1st Quarter (Summer) Quarter Credits 2nd Quarter (Fall) Quarter Credits
Intermediate Pharmacy Practice Experiences (IPPE) 10* Pharmacy Practice Management 2
    Pharmacology/Medicinal Chemistry III 5
    Pharmacotherapeutics I 4
    Applied Therapeutics Lab 1
    Professional Electives I-III 2 +2 +2
TOTAL 10* TOTAL 18
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3rd Quarter (Winter) Quarter Credits 4th Quarter (Spring) Quarter Credits
Clinical Nutrition 2 Pharmacoeconomics and outcomes 2
Pharmacology/Medicinal Chemistry IV 5 Pharmacotherapeutics III/IV 6 + 6
Pharmacotherapeutics II 6 Applied Therapeutics Lab 1
Applied Therapeutics Lab 1 Pre-Rotation Review 1
Professional Electives IV-V 2 + 2 Professional Electives VI 2
TOTAL 18 TOTAL 18
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  • 1 Credit Hour = 3 Contact Hours

Professional Year Three (P3)
(41 credits)

1st Quarter (Summer) Quarter Credits 2nd Quarter (Fall) Quarter Credits
Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPE) 10* Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPE) 10*
Research Project 0 Research Project 0
TOTAL 10* TOTAL 10*
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3rd Quarter (Winter) Quarter Credits 4th Quarter (Spring) Quarter Credits
Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPE) 10* Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPE) 10*
Research Project 0 Research Project 1*
TOTAL 10* TOTAL 11*
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  • 1 Credit Hour = 3 Contact Hours

Pre-Graduation Board Review

CURRICULUM

P3 – Third Professional Year
Advanced Rotations

The third year is dedicated to advanced rotations. The students will be able to apply the knowledge from all material learned during P1 and P2 during their advanced rotations. It is now a time to encounter real-life situations and to be involved in patient care and teamwork.

There are 8 rotations of 5 weeks each. They are divided as follows:

  • Acute Care (required)
  • Ambulatory Care (required)
  • Advanced Hospital Pharmacy (required)
  • Advanced Community Pharmacy I (required)
  • Advanced Community Pharmacy II (required)
  • Elective I § Elective II
  • Elective III

The elective rotations can include, for example:

  • Any of the required rotations
  • Managed care organizations
  • Government agencies
  • Professional associations
  • Drug information
  • Administrative
  • Teaching
  • Research
  • Pharmacy specialties such as: Critical Care, Nutrition, Clinical Pharmacokinetics, Geriatrics, Psychiatry, Pediatrics, Long-term Care, Nursing Home, Pain and Palliative Care.

Innovative Class Schedule

PROFESSIONAL FRIDAYS

Professional Fridays offer unique experiences for students within the Sullivan University College of Pharmacy (SUCOP). Professional Fridays are considered part of a student’s academic workweek (5 days per week). This includes professional activities, service learning, and professional electives, which will run longitudinally through a student’s first and second professional years. Students are not expected to participate in Professional Fridays while they are on their Intermediate Pharmacy Practice Experiences (IPPE) or Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences (APPE) as these activities require attendance at a practice site 5 days per week unless instructed otherwise by the site coordinator or Director of Experiential Education.

Requirements of Professional Fridays

  • Attendance will be taken at these events and will be sent to the student’s faculty advisor for the student’s file.
  • Examples of events include:
    • IPPE/APPE orientations
    • Make-up lectures due to weather, faculty illness, etc.
    • Course projects
    • Research course presentations
    • Professional seminars on different types of pharmacy practice
    • Student organization activities
    • Student remediation
    • Working on student projects or participating in study groups
    • Professional Electives
    • Service Learning Projects (Community outreach activities)
  • Students must document their participation in these events by keeping a self reflection diary. This documentation should be included in the student’s electronic portfolio. Documentation should include but is not limited to:
    •  Signed note by the Faculty advisor attending the student organization event of the student’s participation
    • Signed documentation of the student’s remediation activities by the faculty member doing the remediation
    • Signed documentation by a faculty member of the student study group or project

Participation in and documentation of participation in Professional Friday events is a graduation requirement of Sullivan University College of Pharmacy. Students will receive a certificate of completion at the end of the two year sequence.

 It should be noted that the College of Pharmacy Attendance Policy will be enforced for Professional Friday activities. Except for excused absences listed in the Attendance Policy, the Assistant Dean of Student Affairs will determine whether or not an absence will be deemed excused. Further, it should be noted that any activity for which a student receives monetary compensation (i.e. working) will not count as a Professional Friday activity.

Course Descriptions

PROFESSIONAL YEAR ONE (P1)

Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences

PBS 504 - Anatomy and Physiology (4 credits)
This course is a review of the basic principles of human physiology and anatomy with applications to disease states.

PBS 505 - Pharmaceutics I (3 credits)
This course underlines the basic physiochemical principles that govern pharmaceutical systems, particularly in light of the way in which they affect dosage forms and various drug products.

PBS 506 - Pharmaceutical Calculations w/lab (3 credits)
Students will be prepared to perform accurate dosage calculations for the preparation of solid and liquid dosage forms, inject able medications, and extemporaneously compounded prescription products to ensure patients’ safety.

Students will have time reserved to practice calculation techniques in the laboratory sessions.

PBS 508 - Microbiology/Immunology (4 credits)
This course provides a review of the principles of microbiology and immunology with an emphasis on the aspects that pertain to pharmaceutical science, pharmacotherapeutics and patient-centered care.

PBS 511 - Biotechnology (2 credits)
This course provides an introduction to biotechnology and its relationship to pharmacy. Topics include how biotechnology is used to produce drugs, how those drugs work and the predicted potential and current limitations of biotech drugs.

PBS 513 - Biochemistry (4 credits)
A review of the structure, physical/chemical properties, function and interactions of amino acids, peptides and proteins, nucleotides, and nucleic acids, carbohydrates, lipids, and hybrid molecules with an emphasis on its application to medication and clinical uses.

PBS 518 - Pharmaceutics II w/lab (3 credits)
This course is an introduction to drug delivery systems and their physical and chemical properties. Emphasis will be placed on solid and semi-solid dosage forms. Quality control guidelines and standards of practice will be covered.

PBS 527 – Pharmaceutics III and Biopharmaceutics and Clinical Pharmacokinetics (4 credits)
This will be an integrated course by the Pharmaceutical Sciences and Clinical and Administrative Sciences Departments. Principles in how drugs perform in a human being and how a physiology system affects the drugs as they relate to absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion will be presented. Clinical Pharmacokinetics will build on those concepts to teach how to design a safe and effective drug regimen to patients based on their physiological conditions and disease states and how to monitor therapy regimen for adjustment if needed.

PBS 534 - Pharmacology I and Medicinal Chemistry I (5 credits)
Pharmacology and Medicinal Chemistry I is designed to coordinate with the Pharmacotherapeutics sequence and provides the chemical and pharmacological basics for the Pharmacotherapeutics courses. This course furnishes the details of molecular, cellular, and the physiologic basis of drug action, the influence of chemical and physical properties in structure- activity relationships, drug chemistry, and mechanism of drug action, drug metabolism, drug interactions, toxicity profiles, and pharmacokinetics.

PBS 535 - Pharmacology II and Medicinal Chemistry II (5 credits)
Pharmacology and Medicinal Chemistry II is designed to coordinate with the Pharmacotherapeutics sequence and provides the chemical and pharmacological basics for the Pharmacotherapeutics courses. This course furnishes the details of molecular, cellular, and the physiologic basis of drug action, the influence of chemical and physical properties in structure- activity relationships, drug chemistry, and mechanism of drug action, drug metabolism, drug interactions, toxicity profiles, and pharmacokinetics.

PBS 537 - Introduction to Pharmacogenomics (1 credit)
This will be an integrated course by the Pharmaceutical Sciences and Clinical and Administrative Sciences Departments. An introduction to the human genome, the sciences of genetics and how it relates to medication and treatments will be presented.

PBS 613 - Pharmacology III and Medicinal Chemistry III (5 credits)
Pharmacology and Medicinal Chemistry III is designed to coordinate with the Pharmacotherapeutics sequence and provides the chemical and pharmacological basics for the Pharmacotherapeutics courses. This course furnishes the details of molecular, cellular, and physiological basis of drug action, the influence of chemical and physical properties in structure-activity relationships, drug chemistry, and mechanism of drug action, drug metabolism, drug interactions, toxicity profiles, and pharmacokinetics.

PBS 622 – Pharmacology IV and Medicinal Chemistry IV (5 credits)
Pharmacology and Medicinal Chemistry IV is designed to coordinate with the Pharmacotherapeutics sequence and provides the chemical and pharmacological basics for the Pharmacotherapeutics courses. This course furnishes the details of molecular, cellular, and physiological basis of drug action, the influence of chemical and physical properties in structure-activity relationships, drug chemistry, and mechanism of drug action, drug metabolism, drug interactions, toxicity profiles, and pharmacokinetics.

Clinical & Administrative Sciences

PCAS 501 - Introduction and Initiation to the Practice of Pharmacy (2 credits)
This course will cover the history of pharmacy, the patient-centered care concept, medical terminology, various pharmacy organizations, and team work concept.

Students will visit different settings and will come back to the classroom for discussions and debriefing. The delivery of patient-centered care will be examined from the different types of services in various settings. This will help the students to be introduced from the start to the variety of pharmacy practice.

PCAS 503 - Introduction to Health Care System (2 credits)
An overview of the basic structures and operations of the U.S. health care delivery system, including its historical origins; the changing roles of the components of the system; and the technical, economic, political and social forces responsible for these changes.

PCAS 512 - Medication Safety (2 credits)
Students will learn the mechanism, roots of medication errors, its consequences on patients and health care in general. Mechanisms to promote medication safety will be examined.

PCAS 516 - Communication and Collaborative Solutions (2 credits)
This course will cover interviewing techniques, factors that impact communication, medication histories, patient counseling, and presentation skills.

The mechanism of conflicts will be explored and the techniques to establish a harmonious working relationship or to defuse/prevent conflicts at the workplace will be taught. Projects, presentations, simulations, and mock counseling sessions will provide opportunities to practice and refine these communication skills.

PCAS 517 - Medical Informatics (2 credits)
This course is an introduction to the availability of various technologies applicable to the delivery of pharmacy care, its impact on pharmacy practice, and its applications to patient care.

PCAS 521 - Pharmacy Law and Ethics (3 credits)
The laws, regulations and related ethical issues relating to the practice of pharmacy; the regulation and control of drugs, cosmetics, medical devices, mail order and “internet” pharmacy will be presented.

PCAS 522 - Complementary Alternative Medicine (3 credits)
This course covers different aspects of natural products used as pharmaceuticals, including both plant-derived and microbial-derived (antibiotics) products. Also included will be an overview of whole extracts, herbal products, and purified components of plant and animal extracts. Diverse alternative treatments will be presented.

PCAS 523 - Research Design and Literature Evaluation I and II (4 credits)
The structure of a drug information center as well as the role and functions of a drug information pharmacist will be reviewed. The students will be familiarized with the skills required to handle different types of drug information questions and the techniques on how to fully evaluate health care related literature. Students will be introduced to the different phases of a research protocol. Application of the information learned in the course will be emphasized throughout.

PCAS 525 - Sterile Dosage Forms w/lab (2 credits)
Students will be familiarized with the organization and administration of an admixture program, admixture techniques, the proper utilization of different types of parenteral products, and students will have the opportunity to practice in the laboratory the techniques related to the compounding of sterile dosage forms.

PCAS 526 - Public Health Issues (2 credits)
Issues pertaining to the health of the public and public health policy will be discussed. Their impact on health care and the population will be explored. Pharmacoepidemiology will be emphasized.

PCAS 532 - Clinical Laboratory (3 credits)
This course will introduce students to the basics of clinical laboratory reports. A majority of the course will cover the normal and abnormal laboratory values from different organ systems and disease states.

PCAS 533 - Physical Assessment w/lab (2 credits)
The students will learn the basics of physical assessment of different organ systems and the art of monitoring the effects of drugs in patients.

PCAS 536 - Applied Therapeutics Lab Spring 1st Professional Year (1 credit)
Students will learn to apply the knowledge gained from Pharmacology/Medicinal Chemistry I and II and other related pharmacy courses to real or simulated clinical situations. Active learning, role modeling, case study, and problem based learning will be emphasized. Simple therapeutic cases will be given to introduce students to clinical scenarios likely to be encountered during their Introductory Pharmacy Practice Experiences. Over the counter (OTC) products will be emphasized. Top 200 Prescription Medications will be reviewed independently by the student and tested in class.

PCAS 601, PCAS 602 - Intermediate Pharmacy Practice Experience (10 credits)
Students will practice as a pharmacy extern five weeks in a community setting and five weeks in an institutional setting. They will learn the distribution of a drug from the prescription received to the safe administration of the drug to the correct patient. Students will also learn the operational aspects with all its related issues during the experiences.

PCAS 611 - Pharmacy Practice Management (2 credits)
Emphasis is given to the managerial aspects of pharmacy practice within the different settings of the health care system. This course provides the basic financial and operational management, knowledge, and skills necessary for a successful professional practice.

PCAS 612 - Pharmacotherapeutics I (4 credits)
This course focuses on the pathophysiology and pharmacotherapy of disease states. Emphasis will be placed on the integration of knowledge and skills gained from previous courses with pathophysiology and therapeutics to devise appropriate pharmacy care plans.

PCAS 614 - Applied Therapeutics Lab - Fall, Professional Year 2 (1 credit)
Students will learn to apply the knowledge gained from the Pharmacotherapeutics courses and other related pharmacy courses to real or simulated clinical situations. Active learning, role modeling, case study, and problem based learning will be emphasized.

PCAS 615 - Professional Elective I (2 credits)
This course may be offered by both departments, the Sullivan University, or the University of Louisville and will cover topics related to the profession of pharmacy. This course is designed to enhance professional knowledge and promote self-learning.

PCAS 616 - Professional Elective II (2 credits)
This course may be offered by both departments, the Sullivan University, or the University of Louisville and will cover topics related to the profession of pharmacy. This course is designed to enhance professional knowledge and promote self-learning.

PCAS 617 – Professional Elective III - Professional Elective (2 credits)
This course may be offered by both departments, the Sullivan University, or the University of Louisville and will cover topics related to the profession of pharmacy. This course is designed to enhance professional knowledge and promote self-learning.

PCAS 621 - Clinical Nutrition (2 credits)
Students will learn the basic principles of enteral and parenteral nutrition. Students will learn how to write/adjust a parenteral/enteral nutrition formula, adapted to patients’ disease state. Students will learn how to monitor the effects of nutrition on patients.

PCAS 623 – Pharmacotherapeutics II (6 credits)
This course focuses on the pathophysiology and pharmacotherapy of disease states. Emphasis will be placed on the integration of knowledge and skills gained from previous courses with pathophysiology and therapeutics to devise appropriate pharmacy care plans.

PCAS 624 - Applied Therapeutics Lab – Winter, Professional Year 2 (1 credit)
Students will learn to apply the knowledge gained from the Pharmacotherapeutics courses and other related pharmacy courses to real or simulated clinical situations. Active learning, role modeling, case study, and problem based learning will be emphasized.

PCAS 625 – Professional Elective IV - Professional Electives (2 credits)
This course may be offered by both departments, the Sullivan University, or the University of Louisville and will cover topics related to the profession of pharmacy. This course is designed to enhance professional knowledge and promote self-learning.

PCAS 626 - Professional Elective V (2 credits)
This course may be offered by both departments, the Sullivan University, or the University of Louisville and will cover topics related to the profession of pharmacy. This course is designed to enhance professional knowledge and promote self-learning.

PCAS 631 - Pharmacoeconomics & Outcomes (2 credits)
Students are introduced to the principles and tools of Pharmacoeconomics and outcome assessments that are commonly used to study the impact of pharmaceutical care services on the health and health care of a patient or community.

PCAS 632 - Pharmacotherapeutics III (6 credits)
This course focuses on the pathophysiology and pharmacotherapy of disease states. Emphasis will be placed on the integration of knowledge and skills gained from previous courses with pathophysiology and therapeutics to devise appropriate pharmacy care plans.

PCAS 633 – Pharmacotherapeutics IV (6 credits)
This course focuses on the pathophysiology and pharmacotherapy of disease states. Emphasis will be placed on the integration of knowledge and skills gained from previous courses with pathophysiology and therapeutics to devise appropriate pharmacy care plans.

PCAS 634 - Applied Therapeutics Lab – Spring, Professional Year 2 (1 credit)
Students will learn to apply the knowledge gained from the Pharmacotherapeutics courses and other related pharmacy courses to real or simulated clinical situations. Active learning, role modeling, case study, and problem based learning will be emphasized.

PCAS 635 – Pre-APPE Review (1 credit)

PCAS 636 - Professional Elective VI (2 credits)
This course may be offered by both departments, the SullivanUniversity, or the University of Louisville and will cover topics related to the profession of pharmacy. This course is designed to enhance professional knowledge and promote self-learning.

Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experiences (Total 40 credits)
PCAS 701, PCAS 702, PCAS 711, PCAS 712, PCAS 721, PCAS 722, PCAS 731, PCAS 732
The students will go through eight experiential education experiences of five weeks each. The experiences include a core of Adult Medicine, Ambulatory Care, Advanced Hospital Pharmacy, and Advanced Community Pharmacy and four electives. This will be the time for students to integrate and apply their knowledge to real patients’ situations. It will also be an opportunity for the student to function as a team member of a health care team.

PCAS 700 - Research Project (1 credit)
This course is intended to develop a student’s ability to evaluate and synthesize pertinent literature and effectively communicate a pharmacotherapy-related topic in a professional manner.

Academic Calendar 2009-2010 (P1 Year)

  Summer Quarter: July 6 - September 20
  Finals Week   September 14-18
  Holiday: Labor Day   September 7
   Break   September 21 - October 4 (2 Weeks)
  Fall Quarter: October 5 – December 20
  Finals Week   December 14-18
  Holiday: Thanksgiving   November 26 and 27
  Break   December 21 – January 3 (2 Weeks)
  Winter Quarter: January 4 – March 21
  Finals Week   March 15-19
  Holiday: Martin Luther King Jr.   January 18
  Break   March 22 – April 4 (2 Weeks)
  Spring Quarter: April 5 – June 20
  Finals Week   June 14-18
  Holiday: Memorial Day   May 31
  Break   June 21 – July 4 (2 Weeks)