Starting in 2023, Tokyo University of Pharmacy, in collaboration with Tokyo Medical University Hospital, will begin vaccination training as a new curriculum for fourth-year students at the Faculty of Pharmacy.
During the coronavirus pandemic that has continued since the end of 2019, in addition to doctors, nurses, and dentists, clinical laboratory technicians and emergency medical technicians have been authorized to administer the new coronavirus vaccination only in cases where doctors etc. cannot be secured. In some areas, a shortage of vaccination personnel was a problem.For this reason, the idea of placing pharmacists in charge of administering vaccinations was proposed, but it was shelved due to a lack of practical experience.In light of this current situation, the Japan Association of Private Pharmaceutical Universities has stated that it is necessary for pharmacists to gain practical experience in order to participate in vaccination, and on May 2022, 5, the Japan Association of Private Pharmaceutical Universities has issued a directive to its member universities to train them on injection techniques related to vaccination. We requested that practical training be introduced.
In response to this request, Tokyo Pharmaceutical University has introduced vaccination training into its curriculum.It was conducted in practical training groups (4 groups, approximately 4 people in total) of 9th year students during the "pre-practical training" held in the 420th year of the Faculty of Pharmacy.After practicing vaccine preparation, the students, under the guidance of Professor Hidehiro Watanabe and Lecturer Yuhito Kobayashi, both physicians at Tokyo Medical University Hospital, learned how to properly administer intramuscular injections using a simulator pad that structurally resembles an arm. and practiced subcutaneous injection using a skin simulator pad.They also learned how to approach patients, their positional relationship with patients when administering vaccinations, and precautions to take to prevent infection.
This is the first time that Tokyo University of Pharmacy has attempted a medical training program in which doctors are invited, and it is also an extremely rare case in Japan for a faculty of pharmacy to conduct medical training.Through this collaboration, students in the School of Pharmacy will have a valuable opportunity to learn actual medical procedures under the guidance of doctors.
Professor Yusuke Hori of the Pharmaceutical Practical Training Education Center, Faculty of Pharmacy, said, ``Through this practical training, students can learn medical techniques, vaccination techniques, infection prevention, medical hygiene, etc.They also learn about the importance of life and medical care. It will be an opportunity to think deeply about ethics and attitudes.Furthermore, it is expected that the students will acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to contribute to society as pharmacists, as well as the importance of medical collaboration.''
