INTRODUCTION The interest in continuing education (CE) for pharmacists has increased because of patient safety issues, advancing science and the quick changes in the profession. Therefore, contemporary pharmaceutical care requires an effective and sustainable system for pharmacists to maintain and improve competencies. Although motivation plays an important role both as a facilitator (desire to...

Members of the public expect practicing physicians to be competent. They expect poorly performing physicians to be identified and either helped or removed from practice. "Maintenance of professional standards" by continuing education does not identify the poorly performing physician; assessment of clinical performance is necessary for that. Assessment may be responsive-ie, following a complaint...

The time is now ripe for the development of broad standards of educational content of postgraduate work, standards that will emphasize objectives and stimulate higher achievement without inhibiting widespread experimentation with means and methods. To make this postgraduate work most effective and of good educational content, it should be considered as a continuation of undergraduate and gradua...

Problem-based learning has been increasingly used in pharmacy education. Problem-based learning serves to enhance such skills as problem-solving, critical thinking, clinical reasoning and self-directed learning. The present review draws on previous research into PBL in medical education, and elucidates the applications and outcomes of PBL as applied to pharmacy education. Thus, this article ser...

BACKGROUND Continuing education (CE) is crucial for quality improvement in health care. The needs assessment of CE helps ensure effectiveness. However, such an assessment necessitates certain techniques that are unfamiliar to health care communities in developing countries. This study identifies the needs of providing CE to health care personnel in Saint Lucia. METHODS This study was designed...