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Updated October 2023, effective from January 2024
Compounding EPA - Short Practice Observation (SPO) Feedback Form (2 pages DOCX)This form is to be used to document feedback following a short practice observation (SPO) of the intern compounding a product and for assessment of EPA 2 - Compounding pharmaceutical products via an entrustment discussion.
These tools are intended to assist with the assessment of an intern's achievement of one or more of the performance outcomes listed in the Performance Outcomes Framework 2020 which accompanied the 2020 Accreditation Standards for Pharmacy Programs in Australia.
Short practice observation (SPO)
This EPA has been designed to align with the current Pharmacy Board of Australia (PharmBA) requirements for the preparation of extemporaneously compounded preparations by interns during the period of supervised practice. It has been noted that interns working within hospital pharmacy are often required to undertake batch manufacturing, and this aspect is not fully aligned with PharmBA requirements. For the purposes of this EPA, the definitive reference source is the compounding section of the current version of the Australian Pharmaceutical Formulary and Handbook (APF).
When included as part of an intern’s overall Training and Development Plan for the intern year, further evidence to support entrustment decisions may be necessary, and could include observation of interns’ preparation of products in addition to those required by the PharmBA. This is particularly important since the PharmBA requirements exclude the preparation of more than one product from a particular category.
A short practice observation (SPO) would generally involve a supervisor observing the intern while preparing a compounded product, from completing all preliminary documentation for the compounded product, including calculations, through to the appraisal of the final labelled product.
Assessment of EPA-2
The entrustment discussion is intended to provide additional evidence to support (or not) a decision that an intern can be trusted to perform the EPA with a lower level of supervision (i.e., to progress from one level of supervision to the next). Using the four-step framework, the preceptor should require the intern to:
Ad hoc entrustment discussions can be held at any stage of the intern year and should form part of the overall evidence on which a summative entrustment decision is based. An ad hoc entrustment decision should form part of specific SPOs, and the outcomes recorded on the relevant form. The aim should be to give the intern a clear idea of where performance has been strong and where further improvement is necessary. When either the intern or preceptor considers that the intern may be ready for the next level of supervision, a summative entrustment discussion may be held. At this discussion, evidence from previous activities, feedback and discussions should be reviewed, and the supervisor should ask additional questions until such time as a decision in favour of entrustment to act with a lower level of supervision can be justified.
Refer to the Compounding - Preceptor and intern user guide for further information on how to use this tool.