Teaching Philosophy March 2021

Pharmacists are vital members of the healthcare team. With the ever-changing nature of healthcare, including but
not limited to new guidelines, medications, and unforeseen circumstances, it is important to be a lifelong learner.
As a teacher, my goals are to provide students the skills needed to be successful in being an independent life-long
learner. To help obtain these skills, I feel strongly about an emphasis on case-based learning to allow for
development and honing of skills to be successful. At times, there may not be senior pharmacist available to guide
the learner on what to learn, and for this reason, it is also the important the student is independent in their
learning. Additionally, it is important for students to be honest and self-reflect to identify additional areas to
improve. Throughout teaching, I hope to encourage this among students. My primary objectives in teaching are to
enhance critical thinking and problem-solving skills, encourage independence, and self-reflect honestly.

When evaluating what made me the pharmacist I am today, I can say with full confidence it has been my
professors, mentors, and preceptors who continually challenged me. Throughout pharmacy school, I was a good
student who performed well academically but struggled to apply what I learned to real-life at the beginning of
advanced and introductory pharmacy practice experiences (APPEs/IPPEs). What worked best for me during this
was a personalized experience to my knowledge base and confidence. As I progressed through these experiences,
my knowledge, confidence, and desire for independence increased exponentially.

During the end of my APPEs, my preceptors would push me to work independently on direct patient care and
projects. When an issue or question would arise, they encouraged me to independently prepare an answer or
solution before providing additional insight, therefore assisting in developing problem solving and critical thinking
skills. These skills assisted me in succeeding during my PGY-1 and PGY-2 residencies as more challenging
situations arose. Throughout my PGY-1 and PGY-2, I was continually challenged and pushed to be the best
pharmacist I could possibly be. With this investment from others, I came to value the relationship between a
mentor and mentee. Throughout my path, I have learned the best way to achieve my objectives for teaching are
through mentorship and challenging learners as appropriate.

Didactic teaching has been very enjoyable and rewarding for me. I have been able to participate in a variety of
opportunities with pharmacy students. I aim to ensure students have a strong foundation and be able to apply the
knowledge through lectures. In a large group lecture, I can do this through presenting a PowerPoint presentation
and assessing application of the knowledge through completion of complex patient case. As a class, we were able to
review the patient cases which allowed me to evaluate gaps and misunderstandings in the material.

I have had the opportunity to co-precept students in a variety of settings both inpatient and outpatient. While co-
precepting, I encourage students to be independent and provide frequent feedback to help the students grow.
During feedback sessions, I remind myself of the students’ background, strengths and weaknesses and ensure to be
encouraging to the student. When a student appears to be struggling, I make an effort to understand why this may
be the case, so we can both address the barrier and work to overcome it. Through feedback and overcoming
barriers, I think this enhances critical thinking and problem-solving skills and self-reflection. Watching the
lightbulb light up when didactic and experiential material connect has been extremely rewarding for me. I also
frequently request feedback from students. As I am in the beginning of my career, feedback from students is
extremely important for me to grow and be the best preceptor I can possibly be.

As I continue to progress through my career, I hope to be able to follow the students’ lead and let them take charge
of their own learning. This will hopefully instill a desire for continual learning throughout their careers too. I am a
patient and adaptable preceptor that is excited to give back to the pharmacy profession by sharing knowledge and
mentoring students throughout their careers.