(1358) Assessing Pennsylvania Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE) Pharmacy Student Perceptions of Pharmacist Burnout in Various Areas of Pharmacy Practice

Objectives: The primary objective is assessing the student perception of burnout that pharmacists experience in different areas of pharmacy. The secondary objective is assessing how student perceptions of burnout may affect their career goals in the pharmacy profession. The intent of this study is to assess Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience (APPE) pharmacy student perceptions of pharmacist burnout across various areas of pharmacy practice. Students in their APPE rotations have a unique perspective as they have recent experience in each area of pharmacy practice they are exposed to.
Pharmacist burnout has been an existing issue before the COVID-19 pandemic, but the pandemic further exacerbated pharmacist burnout across pharmacy practice. The pandemic exposed systemic issues through increased workload demand and inefficient workflow that prevented pharmacists from meeting the evolving needs of patients and other healthcare workers. The increased demand created a divide between work-life balance and job satisfaction and contributed to pharmacists leaving the profession due to perceived unsafe working conditions and burnout. From 2020 to 2021, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the number of pharmacists decreased by 1 percent, with an expected additional 2% decline over the next 10 years. Similarly, the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) reports annually on the number of applicants and enrollment of pharmacy schools and applicants went from 106,815 in 2011 to only 40,552 in 2021 and enrollment went from 61,275 in 2012 to 53,516 in 2021. As pharmacy school enrollment continues to decline, it is important to assess student experiences to improve the working conditions and pharmacy profession overall.

Methods: The study will utilize an anonymous electronic survey that surveys pharmacy students on their experiences during APPE rotations, specifically looking at work environment, factors of pharmacy practice that could lead to burnout, pharmacist advice to students, and how those impact student career paths. Data collection for the survey will occur from December to February, and will utilize a variety of question types, including binary, multiple choice, and Likert scale questions. The electronic survey will be sent through an email to the Experiential Coordinators in the pharmacy schools in Pennsylvania for distribution to their students. The inclusion criteria include any APPE student within the pharmacy schools in Pennsylvania. The primary and secondary objective will be analyzed with descriptive statistics. This study is pending approval from the Institutional Review Board.

Results: Research in progress. Data collection will occur from December 2023 to February 2024.

Conclusions: Student perceptions of pharmacist burnout and working conditions could provide insight on how those perceptions impact student career goals. Additional research is needed to further assess why pharmacists are leaving the profession and why pharmacy school enrollment is down.