Dr Tarlochan Singh Gill, Clinical Lecturer at the Medway School of Pharmacy, has been awarded half-share of the 2014 Sciences Faculty Teaching Prize for his work in using Simman technology to teach Pharmacokinetics.
The principles of Clinical Pharmacokinetics are the basis for many therapeutic interventions and are an integral part of the Master of Pharmacy degree. However the concepts have their basis in mathematics and so can form a barrier to the learning of some students. In an effort to enhance his students’ experience, Dr Gill demonstrates clinical pharmacokinetic scenarios using a human patient simulator mannequin controlled by the Simman computer programme.
While simulation training has been used extensively in the military and aeronautical industries and to a limited extent in medical training, its use in schools of pharmacy is relatively new. The students at Medway School of Pharmacy therefore benefit from this innovation.
The prize panel commended the intervention in an area that some students find challenging and the robust evaluation of the effectiveness of the work. Dr Gill commented that “it is a privilege to have the opportunity to make a positive difference in the learning of our pharmacy students and very humbling to be recognised for it.”